The Reflection of Vanity
by INeedADifferentName
Summary: Three years have passed since the Digidestined have saved the Digital World from MaloMyotismon. Now they face an even greater threat that emerges from the inside. How will they deal with such emotion and surprise, as it takes on new forms? For, even amongst the strongest, there lie hidden secrets that await to be uncovered. Temporary Hiatus.
1. Prologue

**I have begun my second story. It isn't much now, but I'll expand its chapters, whenever I have the chance. Any who, this story focuses on the romance and tragedy genre. Also, in case you haven't noticed, this will be a T-rated fiction. Although, there may be some slight to intermediate M-rated content thrown about, but I'll be sure to post a warning for that chapter, should it ever arise. In case you haven't read the summary or just for reminders, here it is- WARING: The following content will contain the pairings, Taiora (Tai and Sora), Mimato (Matt and Mimi), Takari (T.K and Kari) and Kenlei (Ken and Yolei, I don't know the real neologism for this one). Davis, Izzy, Joe and Cody will appear as well, but with fictitious pairings or they remain solo.**

**Note: I do _NOT_ own Digimon, its characters, settings, plots or themes, or the franchise and any endorsements, wherefore mentioned from the original television series/manga or any promotional products. I do _OWN_ any characters, setting, themes and plots introduced for this story and its alluded partners. **

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The Vanity of Mary and Her Marionette

It was three in the morning, when I got out of my car. The rain had been pouring all day, and my clothes were soaked from not having brought an umbrella with me. I didn't think I needed it. It's not like I knew I would have stayed over longer than I thought. It was too much— the emotion, the intensity, everything. I closed the door behind me, as I entered my apartment, removing my heels, while placing my overcoat on a nearby hanger.

I walked inside and clicked the receiver, placed in the living room. "Four messages," the receiver spoke, in a digital voice. I sighed. I tapped my nails on the table, wondering whether I wanted to hear what I already guessed to be. I shook my head to clear my thoughts, then clicked the receiver.

The receiver made a sound, before finally replaying the messages. "First message, 8:14 P.M., date: June 11," the machine replayed. "Hey, Sora, it's Matt. I need to tell you something, call me as soon as you get back." The machine beeped, before replaying the second message. "Second message, 8:34 P.M., date: June 11. It whirred. "Sora, it's Matt again, sorry to keep bothering you, I just…," she heard a sigh over the receiver. "I need to talk to you, call me when you get back. Again, it's Matt, in case you didn't hear the first time."

I chuckled. I didn't care whether it was Mimi, Matt or whoever else. I wasn't about to let them convince me to go out again. No after what happened before. I sat on the couch, while placing my hand on my left cheek.

_Beep! _The machine whirred. "Third message, 11:48 P.M., date: June 11." The machined clicked. "Sora," a perky voice rang through the receiver. "It's Mimi. Sorry to bother you on such late notice. I don't know whether Matt's been calling you or something, but I telling you right now, don't call him back. It'll only make things worse. Anyways, call me if you get the chance. Love to talk to you again. Bye," the machine clicked off.

I sighed. My friends have been doing this lately. Ever since I broke up with _him_, they haven't left me alone. I began to wonder whether they were doing this for their own amusement.

"Final message, 1:15 A.M., date: June 12," the machine whirred. "Hey, Sora, it's me," I instantly recognized the voice. I quickly stood up from my position, rearing in closer to the receiver. "I'm calling to tell you I'm sorry. I know I shouldn't have…," I could hear him pause. Was he trying to tell me something? "I," I heard him stammer. "I…, oh, crap, I have to go, I'll- I'll call you later." The machine clicked off, before I could pound on the phone. I dropped the cordless phone back in its place, before lying down on the couch. _Why, hasn't he bothered telling me he's sorry in person, _I thought. I rested my hand on my forehead, thinking about whether it was right to still feel this way. I closed my eyes to think, but quickly shoved that aside when I heard the receiver again.

"New message," the machine spoke. Click, it went. "Sora," my nerves tensed, it was _him_ again. "It's me again. Listen, I have to tell you something." I could hear him breathing on the other end. "I don't know how to say this… um… could you call me back. Please," I heard him whisper softly. My heart ached. I hated to hear him this way. The machine clicked off again. I sat frozen, not knowing what to think. It wasn't too long before the machine came to life again, interrupting me from my state.

"Sora, don't answer the phone." The voice sounded urgent. It was Matt. "He's trying to call you again, but whatever you do, don't answer it. 'Sora if you're there, don't listen to Matt.'" I heard a shout coming from a feminine voice. I guessed it to be Mimi's. "Shut up, Mimi!" I heard Matt shout to her. "F-you Matt, Sora when you get this call me back, not him. Anyways bye! 'What— Mimi give that back, don—,'" I heard the receiver click off once more.

I silently giggled, thinking about the way my friends always acted. It was the first time I had laughed today. Even, if it was only a small giggle, I didn't mind. I was ready to pick up the phone from its place again, but second-guessed it. I stood up from the couch and walked over to the kitchen, peering inside the refrigerator for something good. I found some yogurt, which I took out and placed on the island-counter.

I was busy, serving some yogurt on a plate I took out, when the receiver whirred to life— again! _Don't people have to sleep_? I wondered. "Sora," I froze at the same voice again. "Hey, I kept thinking about this, and I couldn't wait for you to call me back. I have to say it now. I don't know whether you're on the other end listening, but either way, I have to get this off my chest. Please hear me out." I could hear his tone. He sounded miserable. I walked over to the receiver, dropping what I was holding. I sat on the couch, and waited for him to speak again. "I'm so sorry, Sora." He whimpered. I could hear the sadness in his voice. "I didn't mean for things to go the way they did. I-," I heard him breathe deeply. I placed my hands on my lap, while closing my eyes. "Please forgive me, he croaked. I'm so sorry…," I couldn't see him, but I knew he must've been somewhere secluded_. Maybe at home_, I thought. "Sora," he continued, "please come see me. I know this is too much to ask for, but please." I heard him beg. "Meet me at the _Theatre of Casper and Melody_. I need to show you something."

I heard the receiver click off. I sighed. I hadn't bothered to even stand from my spot. I couldn't. The pain was too much. "_The Theatre of Casper and Melody_," I mumbled aloud. "Why there?" I began to laugh. Tears were beginning to run down my face as I recalled the moment so long ago.

_"Sora, hey, Sora over here, he shouted. I turned to look at who called my name. It was him. "Hey, I shouted back." I ran over to where he stood, while carrying a plush doll I had won from a game at the fair that same day. _

_"What's this?" he asked me, while pointing at the doll in my hands. _

_I smiled. "Oh, this," I perked, "this is Mary," I happily announced, while shoving the doll in his face. _

_"Okay, okay," he grinned, while pushing the doll back to me. "Weird doll, she kind of looks like a female version of—,"_

_"Don't say it," I interrupted him. "She has feelings you know," I joked. I smiled at him, and he did the same to me. _

_"Yeah, sure-sure," he playfully jested. He threw his hands in the air._

_"So, what'd you call me over for?" I questioned him, while laying the doll back in my arms. _

_He grinned at me. "For this," he childishly remarked, while holding out tiny strips of paper in his hand. They were theatre tickets. "Look," he giddied. "I got the tickets for that play you wanted to see so badly."_

_I smiled. "No way!" I snatched the tickets he was holding, examining its contents. The ticket read: Admittance for the play, The Vanity of Mary and Her Marionette; one admission per ticket. I didn't bother to read the small details that were always found in every product. I grinned at him, while jumping into his arms to give him a hug. "Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you," I reiterated. _

_"It's no big deal, honestly Sora. You get so excited over the smallest things," he jokingly mocked. He held me close, before finally letting me go._

_"It is a big deal," I countered. "I've been wanting to see this play since I was a little girl. My mom never had the time to take me, and my father…," I trailed. He must've noticed my sudden expression, because he picked me up, and held me on his shoulder. "Hey, put me down," I shouted at him. "I'm serious.!" I shouted again. He did as I commanded, but not before I managed to attract a few stares from the people around us. I blushed a little, before scolding him. "Don't do that again," I demanded. _

_He shot me a playful smirk, which caused my heart to jitter. "Oh, shut up," I parried. "Let's just go, before we attract anymore weird looks from people." He obeyed and followed me, both of us laughing and smiling._ _Then the memory faded._

I lay on the couch, bawling. I didn't want to move. The memory was too much. I didn't want to believe it was over. Not the way things ended. That's when it hit me. "It doesn't have to end," I whimsically shouted aloud. I shot up from my position, and quickly made my way towards my room.

***Some Time Later*****

"Where is it?" I angrily roared. I had been looking for a small necklace that I received a few years back. It wasn't much, but I knew that _it_ was the only thing I would need for my meeting up. At least, that's what I wanted to believe. "Where are you, you little good-for-nothing," I capriciously sniped, as I searched the drawers in my room. It wasn't long, after that, when I finally found it. "Oh, there you are," I chimed. The necklace had been laced around my doll Mary, whom I placed on the shelf of my vanity. "How'd you get it?" I jokingly asked the doll. I laughed a little, before lacing the necklace on my neck. "Well, I suppose you do look pretty in it." I placed Mary back on the vanity, and left my home.

I knew it was around four in the morning, when I left, because I checked the clock. I had gotten ready for this meeting. I didn't know what to expect, but I knew I had to make things right between him and me. I loved him too much, to let it fall apart now. I got inside my car, bringing an umbrella along, and began to drive. Not knowing whether he would be waiting for me there, I quickly made my way to the _Theatre of Casper and Melody_.

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**So this is only the prologue. The real chapters will hopefully be much longer. Though I may actually make the chapters in this story, pretty short. To keep things rather sparked and interesting. Any who, be sure to review, PM, follow and favorite this story if you wish for me to continue it. Thanks for taking the time to read this. If you want, be sure to spread this story. I also, accept ideas and suggestions, and give credit where credit is due.**


	2. Faceless

**Well, here is the official first chapter. I have made this one a bit longer than the prologue, but as previously stated, most chapters in this story will be somewhat short. Some may be long, but I do want to keep people guessing. Also, for those wondering, this isn't only a romance/tragedy, but as well, a almost-there-mystery. I couldn't pick three genre's so I picked the two most prevalent. Any who, for those wondering... WARNING: The following content contains one major curse word, and some minor interrupted ones. Viewers discretion is advised. Okay, so you read it here, don't blame me. Anyways, enjoy!**

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The rain poured heavily across the roads of Pawn St. and Chasseur Ave. Most of the stores that spanned these twin streets remained closed until the early sign of dawn. This projected the perfect setting for any miscreant deeds or nasty schemes. Though, a picture such as this, was about to take place, as a young woman made her way to the famous, or infamous -depending upon the individual-, world stage of the _Theatre of Casper and Melody. _

She drove under the mileage speed to avoid attracting any unwanted attention, as she quickly made her way to the theatre. It wasn't long, before she finally arrived at her destination. Opening her umbrella wide, to keep the rain from soaking her, she closed the car-door behind her, and walked up the steps into the lavish theatre.

She used her access keycard, to obtain entrance into the theatre's main hall. Her heels echoed through the corridor, bouncing forth-and-back as she made her way into the vanity room. She assumed the person she had come to see, would meet her there— as he always had.

"Tai?" she called into air, while knocking on the door, that led into the room. She waited a few seconds before knocking again. "Tai?" she called out again. "You there?" She remained put until she was sure no one was in the room, before opening the door. She peered inside, only to find it empty. She walked inside. "Hmm…," she sighed. "I knew he wouldn't be here. What the hell was I thinking coming here?" She let out a breath of hot air, before sitting down on one of the only seats available— the vanity stool chairs.

The room had been decorated to resemble a royal chamber, with streaks of gold and red permeating the room and its interior design. All across the room were vanities, mirrors and other intricate objects placed about. The dressing room was past this one, juxtaposed to serve as a convenience.

Sora looked around, before allowing her focus to fall on the mirror directly in front of her. She gazed at the woman staring back at her: red hair, crimson eyes, and a golden tan from playing tennis through her high school years. "Oh, man." She gasped. "Do I need to get a haircut." She had noticed the long hair flowing down her shoulders. She made a promise to herself two years ago to grow her hair long, after some of her friends teased her about it being short.

That's when she heard it; a thud coming from the dressing room. She quickly stood up in frenzy, startled by the sudden noise. She made her way to entrance of the dressing room, creeping in slowly. "Anyone in here?" she shouted aloud into the open space, after opening the door. No one answered. She peered around a little, tapping the walls, until she could find the light switch.

_Click! _She walked inside. The walls were painted a lilac-color, while the carpeting was a darker-shaded white. Racks of clothes, dressers, jewelry stands, and some closet-doors decorated the interior of the room.

Sora looked around, searching for anything that could have made the thudding sound. She stopped when she noticed a pair of small toys in the upper corner of the room. She picked them up. "That's strange," she remarked, while holding a pair of twin dolls in her hands. "What are these doing here? They're supposed to be in the props storage." She gazed at the dolls in her hands, wondering how they got there. The dolls resembled miniature children: a little boy dressed in cargo jeans and plaid shirt, and a little girl in a polka-dot dress.

She rattled the dolls for a while, before sitting down on the corner-space. She placed the dolls on her lap, then held her head in her hands. "What am I going to do?" she grumbled. _I'm losing it, aren't I? _She closed her eyes to think, but quickly opened them when she heard a noise come from the vanity room. She froze. She knew she wasn't want the type to be easily frightened, but considering the fact that her nerves were still tensed from her previous peril, she couldn't find it in her to wonder again.

The noise continued to sound in the other room, causing Sora to push against the wall. It crept closer and closer. She dropped the dolls on the floor, while quickly standing. She made the motion to run to the door and lock it, but was stopped from a hand that suddenly grasped her from behind. She turned to face whoever grabbed her. Her eyes grew wide. "Tai," she yelped. He placed a hand over her mouth, before she could say anything else. She saw him place a finger on his lips, as a gesture to be quiet. She nodded her head, and followed him, as he walked over to the closet space.

"Come here," he whispered to her. She obeyed, and walked over to where he was standing. "I need you to go up there," he whispered, while pointing to the ceiling above. The noise in the other room continued to sound, sending chills down both their spines.

She looked up, and then back at him. "I don't understand what's happening," she suddenly questioned. "Why are we—," he placed a hand to her mouth again.

"I'll explain once we get out of here," he whispered. "But for now, we have to go." He stood on top of a leveled bar, sticking out from the closet space, and pushed on the ceiling's vent cover. He breathed a sigh of relief, when the cover came off easily. "Here," he whispered, while holding out a hand for her to take. "I'll help you up."

She hesitated. The noise continued to rattle in the other room, quickly sending another chill down her spine. She shook her head, before grasping his hand. "Are you sure this is safe?" she questioned him. He nodded back at her. "Okay, whatever you say Tai," her voice sounding unsure. She climbed on top of another pole sticking out, and picked herself up. He held onto her tight, as he pushed her up the vent-space. "Wait, she whispered back, once she was on top of the vent. "What'll you do?"

He stared at her in wide-eyed expression. "What do you mean, 'what am I going to do', you're going to help me up," he silently pestered.

"Oh," she remarked. She held out her hand for him to hold onto. She began to pick him up, but stopped to catch her breath. "Oh my go—," she wheezed. "Tai, you weigh so much." She let go of his hand, rubbing her fingers, before trying again.

He pushed her hand away. "Oh, just forget it. I'll push myself up," he countered. He reached up to the vent, holding on tight to the vent's inner floor-layer, while pushing himself up. It took him a while, before he was able to squeeze himself through the medium-sized hole. "Quick!" he muttered, angry at the expression on Sora's face. She had been silently laughing at him for not being able to fit easily through the vent-hole. "Just, shut up and help me find the cover for the vent."

She was ready to counter, but stopped when she heard the door to the room open. Her eyes widened. She looked down, but couldn't see anyone. She gazed back at Tai, noticing him place the vent cover slowly on the hole, while being careful not to make any noise. "What do we do?" she whispered, barely audible.

He nodded back at her. "Nothing," he muttered. "We have to wait here, until he leaves." She looked back down, and he did the same. They both noticed a shadow lurking about the room, shoving racks and other things that stood in his way. He seemed to be looking for something, they gathered.

Some time had passed, before the man below, finally finished his search. He was ready to leave the room, when all of a sudden; he heard a noise coming from the ceiling. He looked up to see two pairs of eyes staring back at him.

Tai held his hand to his mouth, after he accidently sneezed. It was no use, because the man below them had noticed the two.

"Great, Tai," Sora shouted at him, not caring whether the man was in the room or not. She figured that if they'd get caught, at least she can scold Tai, before anything got ugly.

The man began to walk to their direction, shoving anything aside once more. He was determined.

Tai and Sora, made the motion to turn and crawl further into the vent, but found they were both stuck where they were, since the vent wasn't big enough to let them advance. "We have to do something now, Tai," Sora screamed at him. The man must've heard her, because he quickly climbed the leveler-pole and reached out to grab them.

Tai and Sora moved back as much as they could to avoid his hand. Tai tried kicking the man's hand away, but the lower part of his jean was caught by him. "Let go, you son of a bitch," he yelled. The man pulled him over, surprising Tai with his strength.

Sora tried her best to hold onto Tai's hands as the man pulled him through the vent, but she couldn't seem to find the strength to pull him up. "Tai," she screamed.

"Its okay, Sora," he whispered," I got a plan." He shot a wink at her, before letting himself get pulled down.

"Tai," she screamed again. She looked over the vent, and saw him land on top of the man. "Tai," she yelled after him.

"Sora," he cried, getting up quickly. "Jump down, I'll catch you."

She giggled a little, while readying herself. _Only Tai would use his body as a weapon, _she thought, before jumping down. She was caught by Tai. They both looked at each other, their faces growing red. "Oh, well… ugh…," she stammered.

He blushed, but quickly put her down, before she could notice. The man groaned beside them, making an effort to stand. "Come on," he yelled, we have to get out here before the creep gets up again," he ordered, while pointing at the man.

She nodded, and then quickly followed him, but stopped short, to look back. That's when she noticed it. _Why hadn't I seen it before?_ She thought. She stared at the man on the ground, finally seeing his face for the first time— except, only one problem. "Tai look!" she gasped, while pointing at the man.

Tai stared back at the man, while eyeing where she was pointing. His face matched hers in expression, as his horrid look revealed what he was thinking. The man before them was faceless. "What the fu—," he breathed. "What the hell's going on here?!" he shouted. The man began to stand.

They both ran out of the room, quickly locking the door that besieged the vanity room, and the inner chamber, before running out into the expanse of the main hall. "Where to?" Tai shouted.

Sora looked around, suddenly unable to think of where the hallway to the front of the theater was located. "I- I…," she gasped. She ran her hands through her hair in panic. The main hall stretched wide and far, with eight hallways that led to different departments of the building. She looked around, before closing her eyes to think.

"Sora," he barked, "this is no time for you to stop and think. That man or whatever he is, is gonna be here any second."

"Screw you Tai," she shouted at him, after opening her eyes. "You came in here the same way I did, why can't you remember where to go?" she bellowed.

He stared at her. His face frozen.

"What?" she exclaimed.

He pointed past her.

She froze as well. _There was only one reason why Tai would freeze in a moment like this_, she thought. She turned around slowly, and found herself face-to-face with the faceless man. His face was painted gray, or so she thought.

He made a motion to grab her, but she quickly scurried under him. He seemed taller than when they were in the room. She turned around to see if he was following her, but he wasn't. He was standing still. "What the—," she stated aloud. She felt a tap on her shoulder. She quickly turned around.

"What are you doing, Sora," we have to go now," Tai yelled at her, while grabbing her from the wrist. They both ran from the main hall, and into the nearest hallway they could enter through. They ran farther in, stopping only once they stood in front of a double-door, colored red.

"This is the exit to the outer hall," she yelled excitingly. "If we keep going this way, we'll end up outside!" Her eyes lighted up, as did his. They pushed the doors opened, and hurried through the main lobby, not stopping to see if the man was following them or not. They ran a few more steps before finally emerging to the outside. They didn't stop, until they were on the last few steps that led into the theatre. They turned back to look, only to find no one behind them.

"Wh- whe- wh… where'd he go," Tai shouted, while holding his hands to his knees for support. He was panting from all the running they had done.

Sora, who stood beside him, had equally been panting. She stopped to catch her breath, before speaking. "I- I don't know," she breathed. "I think, he may still be inside." She stopped to look at him. "Didn't you notice," she started, "how he stood still in the main hall? Like he was frozen or something?"

He nodded to her, moving his head left and right. "I didn't focus on him, Sora. I was too busy trying to get away." He stopped panting, and stood erect again. He let out a breath of relief. "Whoo, man I can't believe what just happened," he cried. He grinned at her. "I was scared out of my ass back there," he joked. "I thought we were goners or something. Thank goodness I was ther—," he stopped, when he felt the air leave him.

She had elbowed him in the stomach. "This isn't funny, Tai," she screamed. "We could have been killed. Were you there when that creep was charging after us? It's like he was on a mission or something," she shouted at him, while pointing back to the theatre.

"Jeez, calm down Sora," he snapped, still holding his stomach from the blow. "I know what almost happened to us. I was there remember?" He placed his hand on her shoulder, only to have her throw it aside.

"See, this why I can't talk to you," she screamed at him. "You never take anything serious. It's always fun and games with you."

He beamed at her. "Well, sorry for trying to lighten things up, Sora," he retorted. "I was just trying to make us feel better. After what just happened… I don't know, I guess I just thought…," he voice trailed. He ran his hand through his hair. He didn't know what to say to her.

"That's just the thing," she spoke in a monotone voice. "You never think. Not lately you haven't. Just like at Matt's concert. You're always acting so… indifferent around me." she said the last words slowly.

"What the hell's that supposed to mean," he asked irritably. She had officially put him in a fowl mood.

She breathed a long sigh, before speaking. "When we were at Matt's concert, Tai, you sort of were acting… weird." She found it hard to say the last part. "At first, I thought you had gotten drunk or something, but then Kari told me that you don't drink, so I thought that someone must've spiked your drink or something. I didn't really think too much on it. I don't know, whatever," she hurried herself. "Point is, when we were at the party, you started… saying things."

He stared at her, lowering his eyes. "What sort of things?" he softly spoke.

"You," she began, but stopped herself short, rethinking about how she was going to say it. She walked over to her car and opened the door, motioning for him to enter. "Not here," she told him. "Let's go back to my apartment, we can talk there."

He looked at her surprised.

"Isn't that why told me to come here?" she asked, while staring back at the theatre.

He looked to where she was facing, and then back at her. "No," he confessed. "I needed to show you something."

She smiled at him. "You can show me some other time." She walked over to where he was standing, taking his hands into hers. "Besides, we have a few things to talk about other than what happened at Matt's concert." She stated, while eyeing the front of the entrance to the theatre.

He gave her a weak smile. "Okay," he whispered softly, his fowl mood suddenly dissipated. He let go of her hand, and watched as she walked back to her car. He followed closely behind. As he was preparing to enter the car, he looked back at the theatre, gazing at the golden building. "I won't be able to show you later, Sora," he whispered, closing his eyes, as the words escaped his lips. He opened them to read the words sprawled across the theatre's public display board: _The Theatre of Casper and Melody,_ looking under the words to read on: _and the famous play of Her Royal Highness - The Vanity of Mary and Her Marionette._

"Mary," he silently murmured. He looked at Sora, who was busy readjusting her car-seat to accommodate him, before speaking again. "Good-bye, my love," he mumbled, before entering the car.

As Sora drove off, he looked one more time at the theatre, as it faded away in the distance. He felt a tear trickle down the side of his cheek, but quickly swiped it before Sora could notice it. He smiled at her, and she smiled back, as the sun rose, bringing on the dawn of the new day.

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**I tried making the end sad. If it isn't well then, I'll try harder. Anyways hope you guys are enjoying the story so far. Don't forget to review, PM, follow and/or favorite, if you like this story, and want me to continue it. I'll do my best at updating this story and The Creation of Nothing, but I have no idea how frequent. The footnotes may be short now, but hopefully they'll get longer as the story progresses. Any who, thanks everyone for reading this story. I greatly appreciate it and am very grateful.**


	3. Intimacy

**I have no idea how I even started this next chapter so quickly. I was simply sitting at my laptop, staring at its blankness, when suddenly, I felt the urge to write some more. So, that's how this beautiful chapter received the light of day, in such quick notice. Hope you guys love it. Warning: Some emphasis on minor sexual content, nothing major, but some people have dirty minds, so... Also, I think I may have thrown in a curse word around somewhere, but I can't remember. This may be an M-rated chapter, not 100% sure on that yet. Anyways, enjoy.**

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The apartments carpeting was soaked with water, along with visible footprints left behind by two pairs of shoes; one larger than the other. Its slated appearance, and rough exterior concealed most of the evidence. Though, to the touch, its contents revealed otherwise. Anyone who crossed on bare feet or crawled on its space would have known what was seeped deep within, but to the eye, nothing was what it seemed.

No one could understand this better, than Taichi Kamiya. He made his way into the apartment of his once best friend, Sora Takenouchi. Recently, their friendship has distanced itself, through the years. Understanding why was once one of his former priorities. A priority that has now been mutilated and charcoaled into nothing, by the hands of someone close to him, — or so he thought.

"Ugh, now the landlord's going to rile me for this," screamed Sora as she stared down at the wet carpet beneath her. Hey, Tai, can you go get me some paper towels, and maybe some Clorox. I have to whiten this carpet as much as I can." She screamed at her former best friend."

He nodded to her and made his into the kitchen, drenching as he did. "Um… Sora," he called to her from the other room.

"Yeah?" he heard her shout back.

"Shouldn't we change clothes, before walking anywhere else in your apartment? We're soaking wet!" he bellowed.

She picked herself up from lying on the carpet on her knees, and looked down at her shirt and pants. They were dripping onto the carpet beneath her. "Crap," she remarked. She quickly ran over to the kitchen, cursing a few words as she made her way there.

"Whoa, easy there Takenouchi," he remarked. He stopped her from running all over the kitchen. "Here," he offered her a wet towel.

"Where'd you get this?" she questioned him, after taking the towel from his hand. She began using it to dry her hair.

"From there actually," he pointed to the counter behind her.

She looked to where he was pointing, noticing some towels stacked on top of the island. 'What the?" she stated aloud, while walking over to where the extra towels lay. "Who put this here?"

He shrugged at her. "Beats me. I just came here remember?" He began to take his shirt off, to stop the water from dripping off into the kitchen floor, but was immediately interrupted by a mortified shout.

"Tai, oh my gosh," she shouted to him. She turned around before she could see him half-naked. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"What?" he questioned her, after quickly putting his shirt back on and running to her. "What's wrong?"

She turned to stare at him. "You can't be serious?" she remarked. She felt a blush creep its way into her cheeks. He looked at her confused. "Tai, you can't just take your shirt off in front of other people. What are you thinking?" She slapped him with the towel she was holding.

"Ow," he roared, while retreating his hand from the shock. "Hey, it's not like it's a big deal or anything. I'm a guy, all guys do that."

"Yeah, well guy," she mocked coolly, "not in my house you won't."

He stared at her, as she gave him that, "you better know it" look before finally giving in. "Well what do you want me to do?" he exasperated, finally defeated.

"Well, for one, genius, you can go into the bathroom and dry yourself up. I'll get you some towels from my bedroom. You can take a shower if you want, but don't do anything funny, you got that Kamiya?"

He eyed her carefully. "What do you mean by that?" He grabbed a towel from the countertop beside him.

"You know what I mean," she looked at him sternly in the eye. "And don't use that towel, for all we know it's probably dirty." She demanded, while taking the towel from his hand.

"And you would know that because…?" he asked, while twirling his wrist in a circular motion.

"Actually I don't know if it is," she admitted. "In fact," she started, finally grasping the situation, "I don't even remember putting these towels here in the first place." She eyed the towel in her hand suspiciously. He watched her make an observation, before finally speaking.

"They're your towels right?" he asked. She nodded him a yes. "Well, that leaves the cleaning lady out." She laughed at that. "What?" he questioned irritably.

"Well, for one," she countered, "there's no such thing as a cleaning lady, at least, not for this place. Second, these towels are mine, but the question is, how'd they get here?" She pointed at the towels lying on the island counter.

He sighed. "Look Sora, we can spend all day thinking about how the towels got on the island, or," he pushed his index fingers upwards," we can stop figuring this out, and actually go and change before your kitchen becomes an indoor pool," he jokingly added.

She looked at the floor beneath her, and noticed the small puddle that was beginning to form, due to their wet clothes. She now regretted dropping her umbrella back at the theatre. Though, she shoved that thought aside. "Fine," she caved. She let out a long sigh, before looking at him again. "You use the bathroom downstairs; I'll change in the one upstairs."

He nodded his head in agreement. "Um… one question," he poked.

"Yeah," she cried, wanting to get out of her clothes already. She was tired of them sticking to her.

"What clothes do I change into?" he remarked.

She looked at him in surprise. "Oh, I hadn't thought of that. Um…," she began. She didn't have any brothers who she could borrow clothes from, but even if she did, it's not like she lived with her parents anymore. Not wanting to think about that, she moved her thoughts to another direction. "Well, you can always wait in the bathroom, until I finish drying your clothes." She suggested.

He eyed her. "Okay," he agreed. "On one condition," he argued.

"I don't think you're in a position to create "conditions", Tai," she smirked at him. "Not unless you wanna' catch a cold." She let her eyes glide up-and-down noticing his shirt sticking to his form. _He looks good wet_, she thought.

"Just hear me out," he retorted, oblivious to Sora checking him out.

She snapped her daze to look at him. "What?" she posed.

"You're not allowed to go in the bathroom, while I'm in there."

She beamed at him, narrowing her eyes as she did. "And why in the heck, would I want to go in the bathroom, when you're in there all butt-naked," she jested. She crossed her arms and stood looking at him— waiting for an answer.

"Oh, no reason," he grinned. "Just needed to make sure you wouldn't go in there, is all," he stated, and then snatched the towel back from her hand. "I'll call you once I'm done."

"Done with what exactly?" she eyed him suspiciously. Her face made a weird expression.

He noticed, and made a comment on it. "Dang, Takenouchi, that's personal guy stuff. You don't see me questioning you on what you do in the bathroom— alone." He stated the last part slowly. He then shot her a smirk of his own.

She looked at him disgusted. "Tai, what are you getting at?" She remarked, her voice uneasy.

He smiled at her, before giving her a nudge on the head. "Nothing you idiot, I'm just messing with ya'," he playfully joked. He saw her eye him carefully. "Look, I was just saying don't go in there, cause' Imma be showering. What did you think I meant?" he knowingly asked.

"Nothing," she lied. "But wait, then why'd you say, 'once you were done?' And why do you always make things look so suspicious?" She faced him, while looking at him in the eye.

He shot his hands up in defense. "Jeez, calm down Sora. I only meant once I was done taking off my clothes, I was going to call you to come get them. How else were you gonna wash them? Can't even ask for a favor, cause' you always take things the wrong way."

She watched him, her temper going up. This was one of the reasons she hated him, but also, one of the reasons she loved him. "What I'm I going to do with you?" she asked him.

He shot her a wink, before turning around to head for the bathroom. "By the way," he called to her as he walked, "your kitchen is flooded now."

She looked at the floor that lay before, holding her head up and letting out a long breath of air. "Great!" she shouted, while throwing up her hands. "Just what I needed."

She grabbed the kitchen mop, and cleaned the entire floor, before heading up. She was careful not to let her clothes drip onto the carpet as she made her way to the upstairs restroom. After, entering the bathroom, she removed all her clothes, and changed into a tank top and medium shorts, that hugged her thighs. Luckily for her, she had kept a spare set of clothes in the bathroom in case of an emergency.

"Sora!" she heard Tai's voice call her. She quickly placed her wet clothes in the hamper, and ran downstairs, to aid Tai with his clothes. "I'm here Tai," she yelled back at him through the door that separated the two. The door opened slightly, revealing a hand holding a pair of shoes, some briefs, a white shirt, and dark-blue jeans.

"Take these," he remarked, while shaking his hand.

She took the clothes from his hand, eyeing the boots, she was holding. "You want me to dry your shoes too?"

"Yeah, they got soaked by the stupid rain as well," she heard him through the door. He closed it back again.

"You're lucky I like you," she muttered under her breath.

"What?" he shouted.

"Oh, ah, nothing," she yelled back_. How could he hear me from in there_? She wondered. She walked back upstairs, into the washroom. She placed Tai's clothes in the dryer, along with hers, throwing in some fabric softeners, before staring the machine.

_45 minutes_, the washer displayed. She looked at it, before going into her bedroom. As she walked into her room, she noticed her Mary doll sitting on the vanity. She walked over to it, and picked her up. "Oh, Mary," she cried, while holding the doll in her hands. "Sometimes I wish you could speak to me." She sat down on her bed, cradling the doll in her arms. "You know," she spoke to the doll, "Tai's here again." She giggled. She'd had been speaking to her doll since Mimi recommended for her to write all her feelings in a diary. She didn't like the idea, since she thought that diaries could be read by anyone; but the idea of opening up caught her interest. That's when she decided that talking to her doll was a great way to let her emotions out.

The doll stared back at her, speechless as always. "I think I may actually be falling for him hard now," she confided to the doll. "Every time I look at him, my heart starts pounding. Heck, I can't even stay mad at him too long, no matter how many stupid things he does. Sure he may say mean things at times, but I think the things he says are what he truly feels. He's like Mimi in some ways. They both say what's on their minds." She held the doll up, to look at her more clearly. "What do you think, Mary?" she rhetorically asked the doll. She had given her that name, after the girl that starred in the play, _The Vanity of Mary and Her Marionette._

The doll remained motionless. "Meh, I guess it sort of weird talking to a doll about my feelings," she admitted to herself. She let out a small laugh, before placing the doll beside her on the bed. "It's not like I want to," she confessed to the doll, "it's just that, you're probably the only one I can truly open up to; since you can't judge me."

She lay on her bed, and began closing her eyes and drifting off to sleep, until she heard a call coming from downstairs. It sounded like a murmur at first, but as she awoke, she could hear it more clearly.

"S…," the voice went. "So…," the voice shouted in her ears again. "Sora!" she could hear the voice. She opened her eyes wide, realizing who it was coming from. "Oh crap," she shot up from the bed, quickly getting off. She noticed that the Mary doll was back on the vanity. "How'd you get there?" she asked the doll. "Sora!" she heard a shout again.

She shook her head, ignoring the thought, as she made a dash to the laundry room. She quickly snatched Tai's clothes from the dryer, and made her way downstairs again, skipping every other step on the stairwell. "Here ya' go Tai," she cried, as she ran downstairs, holding his clothes into the air. She ran smack into him, as she turned the corner. "Ow, what the—," she fumed, while rubbing her face.

"Sora, where the hell have you been? I've been calling you for the past twenty minutes. I figured you left or something, so I was heading over to the laundry room to get my clothes."

She looked up to find a shirtless Tai standing over her, with a towel covering his lower body. She covered her eyes with her hands, facing away, while she did. "Tai, here," she extended her hand that held his clothes, while still looking away.

"Oh, thanks," he stated, his voice perking up again. He grabbed the clothes from her hand, and walked back into the bathroom. "So um… where were you Sora?" he shouted through the door, while changing.

She stood up from having been bumped into, and made her way to the door. She leaned against it. "Oh, um… I accidentally fell asleep," she admitted. "The clothes were gonna' take forty-five minutes, and I didn't want to wait, so I laid down on my bed, and the next thing I knew. I feel asleep." She could hear him changing.

"Oh, well that's good to hear." He shouted back.

"You're not mad?" she asked him, through the door.

"Nah," he replied. "If anything, I should be apologizing to you for making you fall."

"Oh, that," she slapped the air, "it's nothing. I was just—, whoa," she gasped.

"Whoa," he repeated after her, catching her in his arms. "That was a close one."

She hadn't noticed that he was done changing, and forgot to stop leaning against the bathroom door. She pushed away from his hold, her face matching the color of her hair.

He looked at her sheepishly. "You okay there? I think all the blood rushed to your head or something. Your face is red," he remarked.

She turned away, her back facing him. "Yeah. I think I better go lie down though, my head still feels light," she lied. She made her to the living room, and sat down on the nearest couch.

A few minutes passed, before he joined her. "So," he howled, while sitting down next to her. "What's on the agenda for today?"

"What do you mean?" She turned to face him. She saw him place a paper and pencil on the coffee table.

"You know," he remarked, while scribbling on the paper. "About what happened earlier today?"

She looked at what he was writing, mouthing the words, "_Recent Events_". "If you're referring to the recent incident with me bumping into you, I already told you it was—,"

"No, not that," he shot a hand to the air to interrupt her. "I'm talking about what happened back at the Theatre."

"You mean with the faceless creature that was chasing us?" she roared.

He shot her a glance, before looking back the paper. He wrote, "_Faceless man_" on the paper. "Sure, that's one thing, but also, what happened afterwards." He saw her eye him with a look that he took as, "the hell you talking about". "What I mean is," he reassured her, "when we were at the front of the theatre, you mentioned me saying some things back at Matt's concert."

She gazed at his back, and then back at the paper, watching intently at what he wrote. She read: _Matt's Concert Incident_.

"Well?" he questioned, still holding the pencil in his hand.

She let out a sigh, while allowing her gaze to fall on her lap. "Tai," she slowly breathed, her mood suddenly dropped. "I don't want to talk about that right now."

"Oh, come on Sora," he bellowed. "We have to talk about it someday."

"Yeah, but until that, 'someday,' I don't really want to deal with it now," she snapped.

He looked at her, finally acknowledging her mood. "Okay, okay," he sighed, while dropping the pencil onto the paper. "We won't talk about it now. But promise you'll tell me soon." He cupped her face in his hand, forcing her to look at him. "Promise me?" he repeated the phrase.

She looked at him, staring back deeply into his deep-brown eyes. A few seconds passed, before she finally pulled away from his hand, and nodded to him in agreement. "Okay," she whispered softly.

He grinned. "Thata' girl," he jokingly pestered. "Okay, so now that that's out of the way," he announced, while crossing off what he recently wrote, "lets get on to the second topic. What do we know about this freak-of-a-man?"

She shrugged at him. "Well, for one," she perked her mood suddenly bright again, "He seemed to be searching for something in the dressing room. He must've not found it, cause' I didn't see him holding anything." She saw him write something on the paper, but couldn't make out what it was.

"Okay," he remarked, "what else do we know?" He sat erect, fully focused on the matter.

She hadn't seen him this way, since their adventures in the Digital World. So calm and collected. She liked that side of him. "We also know that the man was faceless." She happily cried.

He turned to look at her. "Really, Sora?"

"What?" she asked, confused.

"The man was faceless? As if we didn't know that already." He grinned at her.

"Just shut up," she joked. She nudged him with her shoulder, and he nudged her back. "I do have a question of my own though," she continued.

"Shoot," he exclaimed.

"Well, I've been wondering this since we got back, but um… what were you doing hiding in the dressing room? And for that matter, where were you in there? I called out for you several times, but you didn't answer." She stared at him intently again, not wanting him to turn away.

"Oh, well, I, uh…," he stammered, his face growing red. He tried to turn away, but he couldn't without Sora getting suspicious. He took a deep breath, and exhaled, before speaking again. "To be honest Sora… I don't really remember."

She eyed him carefully. "What do you mean?" she asked him, her voice sounding uneasy. She continued to gaze at him intently.

"Well, for starters, I remember calling you to tell you that I'm sorry, but you wouldn't pick up. Then I tried reaching you again a few hours later, but you still didn't pick up. I was in the lobby of the _Theatre of Casper and Melody,_ when I called you again. Only, that time, I left a message for you to meet me there. That's when I went inside the main hall, and the next thing I knew, I was lying down in the dressing room, hidden in some coat rack.

"How'd you know I was in there?" she interrupted him.

"I woke up when I heard movement." he replied. "Anyways, I got up, and the next thing I knew, I see you in the corner, with a dreaded look on your face. It didn't take me long after that, to realize what was going on." He finished up.

There was a long pause, before she spoke. "So… you don't remember anything between you being in the main hall and then to the dressing room?" She saw him nod a no. "That's strange. It's almost as if you teleported there or something."

"Sure beats me. I'm thinking it had to do something with that faceless creature though." He shuddered at the thought of it.

"Why?" she remarked. She saw his finger twitch.

He dropped his gaze to the paper on the table. "Cause', while I was showering, I remembered seeing something. It was after heading to the main hall. I can't really recall, cause the memory is still fuzzy, but I think he was in there with me. The faceless man I mean."

Her head shot up in response. "So you do remember some parts then?" she posed.

He shrugged. "I guess I do, but most of the parts are still too hazy. It's like as if a black wall is around it or something."

She looked at him, as he stared at the paper. "Tai," she called his name, while grabbing his hand and holding it in hers.

He looked up to face her, her eyes seeing through his.

"You're scared aren't you?" she inquired. He nodded. "Don't be," she tried to reassure him.

"You don't understand Sora, it feels as if though it's all from some horror movie or something. For all I know that freak could have done something to me, while I was knocked out."

"But you don't even know if he was even in there with you," she whined. "Besides, you said so yourself, you can't really remember what happened to you." She gave him a weak smile.

He smiled sheepishly back at her, before shaking his head. He pulled away from her hand, and grabbed the pencil lying on the paper. He wrote something on the back of the paper.

She inched a little higher, to see over his shoulder at what he was writing. "What're you scribbling now, Tai?" she questioned him.

Several minutes went by, before he finally stopped. He picked the paper up to show her. "This," he exclaimed, while holding the paper into the air.

Her eyes grew wide. She held her hand to her mouth, mumbling the words through her fingers. "That's…!"

* * *

**My first cliffhanger for this story, hurray! This one is on purpose, in case anyone's wondering. Any who, don't forget to review, favorite, follow and/or PM me if you wish for me to continue this story. Seriously, I'd appreciate if some of you guys would leave reviews. I really want to know whether this story is good or bad. Okay, so I told myself that these footnotes would probably be longer as the chapters increased, but I can't seem to find anything to post down here. Enough of my ranting. Thanks everyone for taking the time to read this story, I extremely am grateful for the effort made. I know sometimes these stories can be a drag, but if you stay with me, I'll improve through your efforts. Thanks again!**


	4. Claret

**Releasing the third chapter in this installment. I have to warn here, that this chapter is a little shorter than most. I was going to continue it on further, but I wanted to add in some things, before finally revealing what will take place next. Anyways, I hope you guys may enjoy this. Warning: Mimato is taking place.**

* * *

A girl stood, alone by a closed store, with no one in sight. She was waiting for someone, while holding her umbrella as the rain poured heavily across the street before her. She looked, gazing as the wind pushed through the trees. The minutes ticked by, and her feet began to soak.

She looked down, and sighed. "Tsk, oh," she groaned. She bent down to untie her heels from the straps, so she could carry them on her hands. She placed the heels in her purse, whining about the water soaking the bag.

"He's going to have to buy me a new one. That jerk," she whined. "How dare he make me wait for him in this freezing rain." She fumed a little, before taking out a pair of sneakers. "So, much for a nice evening," she sighed. She had dollied herself up for the evening, wearing a soft-laden dress which matched her hair, and former matching heels, which now rested in her purse.

She quickly put on the sneakers, to avoid getting her feet wet. "This is just great," she whined, after several minutes passed. "I'm cold, my feet are wet and now my hair's going to frizz. Way to go Matt, so much for taking out a girl on her first date."

It was then, when she heard a shout coming from a distance. "Mimi!" a voice shouted to her. She turned to look at who called her name. A Blonde blue-eyed young man was running towards her.

She turned back, pretending not to have heard him.

He ran up to her, panting. "Mi- Mi," he panted, while supporting his weight with his hands on his knees," didn't you hear me calling you back there?" he wheezed while pointing a thumb towards the direction behind him." He stood erect.

She eyed him. "No," she lied, clearly in a bad mood.

He noticed it. "Well, what's bugging you all of a sudden?"

She beamed at him. "Really, Matt?" She saw him look at her confused. "Matt, look at my shoes!" she demanded.

He looked down, before looking back at her. "What?" he questioned.

"These shoes," she posed. "They're'nt supposed to be sneakers, you moron!" she argued.

He sheepishly grinned, while holding his hand to his back. He always knew Mimi was extremely honest, if not, on the verge of blunt, but sometimes she really took the cake. "Well, did you get them mixed up or something?" he asked, even more confused.

She fumed. She closed her eyes, and let out a deep-breathe before opening them again. "Matt," she vexed, "I was wearing heels a while ago, my dress was nice and perfect and my hair was done," she bellowed while holding her hair out. She tied it back a while ago, to keep it from blowing all over the place, as the wind picked up.

He looked at her, gliding his eyes back and down, before stopping at her head. "Sorry," was all he could mumble.

She looked at him, noticing the apologetic expression on his face. She couldn't stay mad at him on their first date. "Oh," she groaned. "Just forget it. Let's just go, before my dress starts to stick. The last thing I need is to take it off too."

He smiled at her. "I won't mind," he joked. He stopped after noticing her expression. "Kidding," he quickly assured.

She frowned at him. "Come on Matt, before I really start to tick," she muttered the last part, while walking to his car. He followed closely behind.

They entered his car, as the rain poured heavily onto the dry pavement. He sat in the driver's seat, while she took the passenger's. They drove off, receding into the distance.

"So, where are we headed?" he asked her," as he drove.

She turned away, looking out the window. She had been mad at him, refusing to talk since they got in the car. That was twenty minutes back.

"Awe, c'mon Mimi, I said I was sorry," he whined, while placing a hand to her knee.

"Don't," she grumbled, while shoving his hand aside. She continued looking out the window. She didn't know how long she would keep this up, but she felt it was his deserved punishment— the silent treatment.

He quickly faced her, before returning his attention back to the road. Several minutes passed. He let out a long sigh. "Mimi—,"

"What?" she angrily questioned.

He slowed the car, before parking on a nearby lot.

She looked out, noticing how deserted it looked. "Matt, what are we doing here?" she questioned him. Her eyes were blazed.

"I'm not driving this damn car, until you tell me what's gotten over you!" he answered her, his voice rising. "You seem to be acting like some… ugh," he groaned. He slammed his hand on the wheel, causing it to honk.

"You freaking stupid-ass, you don't get it, now do you?" she retorted.

He eyed her. "Well, I won't if you don't tell me," he vexed.

"Matt, I have been waiting for you since 8:45 outside the freaking mall!" she yelled at him. "And now it's 11: 33," she gasped, while pointing at the car's digital clock.

He looked to the clock, before turning back to her. "What were you doing waiting outside the mall at 8:45?" he asked, while ignoring her sudden shouts.

She eyed him, stunned. "You can't be serious?" she rhetorically questioned. "You called me yesterday to tell me if I wanted to go on our first date together. Remember?"

"Well, duh," he retorted. "Why do you think we're out here right now?"

"That's not what I mean!" she shot back. She stopped to breathe, wanting to ease her anger. "Matt," she continued, "you called to tell me that you wanted to go out finally. You said to meet you at the mall around 8:30."

He paused to think. "I did call you, yeah, but I don't remember saying anything about meeting up in front of the mall at 8:30," he recalled.

"What? No-no-no," she reiterated. "I remember. You said, 'meet me at the front of the mall around 8:30'," she quoted.

He nodded his head. "No," he disagreed. "I left you a message to meet me at the mall around 11:00. That's when that stupid restaurant you like serves their specials."

She stopped to look at him. "But…," she began, "you did call me around 8:00. Here look," she took out her cell-phone. "I'll show you the message," she stated, while scrolling through the phone. A few seconds passed, before she let out a small laugh. "Well, that's funny?" she posed.

"What?" he remarked.

"The message isn't in here." She scrolled back through her phone, thinking she may have missed it.

"Maybe you forgot to save it," he stated.

She nodded her head. "Impossible, my phone automatically saves the last ten phone calls. So long as they're two minutes or less." She added.

He shrugged. "That proves it then," he roared. "I never told you to meet me at 8:30." He smiled. He was happy to know that he wasn't at fault.

"No," she remarked, "I clearly remember you calling me yesterday to meet you there. But all I get is the message from Sora around 2:15 and then it skips over to the message from today around 3:15 in the morning," she whined, while continuing to scroll through her phone.

He pressed his eyebrows together. "What were you doing calling someone at three in the morning?" he curiously questioned.

She shoved the phone back into the front pocket of her purse. "Nothing," she replied. "It was just a stupid message from Tai."

"Tai?" he remarked. "What'd he want with you at three in the morning?" he repeated. He gazed at her.

She shrugged. "Like I said, nothing. He just called to tell me, if I wanted to meet with him at the _Theatre of Casper and Melody _later today," she emphasized the name.

"Whaaaaaat?" he slowly stated. "Why would he want to meet with you there?"

"Well, maybe he wants to go out with me," she joked. He laughed at it. "What?" she asked, annoyed by his lack of faith.

"No offense Mimi, but he doesn't like you in that way. Sure, you're his friend, but he thinks you can be kind of annoying sometimes,' he lightly admitted.

She made a face. "Well, you like me," she stated.

"Yeah, but that's only cause I like everything about you. That, by itself, throws out all the things that Tai doesn't. Besides, "he remarked coolly, while pressing against his car-seat, "he likes Sora." His eyes grew wide in realization of what he said. He turned to face her, only to find a grin on her face. "Don't tell him I told you that," he begged.

She smirked at him, revealing the front of her teeth. "Tai likes Sora?" she mused. "Oh, I so freaking knew it," she clamored, while clasping her hands together. Already, in that moment, all the former anger she had towards Matt dissipated.

He groaned. "Tai's gonna' kill me if he ever finds out I told you." He began to run his fingers through his hair.

"Oh, stop it Matt. It's not like I'm going to tell Sora. I'm sure she'll want to hear him it from him anyways."

He stopped to look at her. "What do you mean?'

"Well, isn't it obvious," she stated matter-of-factly," Sora likes him too." She was already on her knees, her hands shoved under her legs like a little girl.

"You're kidding?" he shouted. He shot up from his previous position.

She nodded her head. "Nope! Sora told me two years back when we were out shopping."

"And she still likes him to this day?" he questioned. He saw her nod. "Dang! And to think I was gonna' tell her myself earlier." He moved the seat back to get more comfortable.

"You were going to do what?" This time it was her turn to ask in confusion.

He looked up, after adjusting his seat. "Um… nothing," he replied nervously.

"Matt Ishida, you tell me right now!" she clamored.

He shot his hands up. "Okay, okay. Just don't hurt me," he joked. He saw that she didn't laugh. A few moments passed, before he let out a long sigh. "Around eight I called Sora, to tell her what Tai confessed. I know, I know, stupid right?" he asked. She remained quiet, but he could have sworn he heard her mutter something under her breath. He continued. "Anyways, she didn't pick up, so I tried several minutes later. Again she didn't pick up." He repeated. "But thank goodness she didn't. Cause after hanging up, I finally saw how stupid the idea was."

She nodded her head in agreement. "And not to mention, idiotic, selfish, inconsiderate, lo—,"

"All right, I get it," he sighed.

"Good," she remarked. She pulled her cell-phone out of her purse again.

"What're you doing?" he asked, as she was beginning to dial a number.

"Correcting your mistake," she replied.

He was about to say something, but she shushed him. A dial could be heard, until a voice picked up. "Hello, this is Sora. I'm sorry, but I can't come to the phone right now. If you would so kindly leave a message, I'd appreciate it. Thanks." He heard the automated message replay, followed by a beep.

"Sora, its Mimi. Sorry to bother you on such late notice. I don't know whether Matt's been calling you or something, but I'm telling you right now, don't call him back. It'll only make things worse." She could see Matt gesticulating. He was trying to tell her something. She ignored him. "Anyways," she continued, "call if you get the chance. Love to talk to you again. Bye," She breathed a sigh of relief, before closing her phone and shoving it back into her purse.

"Really Mimi," he uttered, "you had to mention me?"

She beamed at him. "Well you were the one who tried to call her you know. I had to let her know that nothing suspicious was up." She grinned.

He smiled back at her. "Whatever you say."

She gazed at him, before remembering the state she was in. Not wanting to start another argument about it, she shifted her thoughts into another direction.

He noticed. "Whatcha' thinking about?" he questioned.

She pondered for a little more, before answering. "Oh nothing. I was just wondering why Tai would call me to meet up at that stupid theatre."

He shrugged. "Sure beats me."

"You're not even a little freaked out by it?" she asked.

He sat erect, looking at her. "Sure, it's weird, but knowing Tai, it's probably some stupid prank or something. He's been wanting to get back at you since the concert you know."

She blushed at that. "Don't even remind me," she groaned. "But still," she continued back on the conversation, "he did sound serious on the phone."

He reached out to her, taking a hand to his. "Well, what exactly did he say?" He looked at her squarely in the eyes.

"He told me to meet him at the theatre around three in the morning. He said it was urgent. He really did sound serious Matt," she repeated. "I haven't heard him sound like that since the times when we were in the Digital World."

He closed his eyes remembering the times when Tai was their former leader. In some ways he still missed that part of him. He opened them again, to meet Mimi's. "That settles it then," he cried, "we're going to the theatre."

"Are you sure?" she asked. "I'm not even dressed up for the theatre."

He waved a hand at her. "Relax, I'll take you home really quick, you get changed, we'll grab a bite to eat, and then we're off to the theatre," he declared.

She smiled. "That's sounds like a good plan," she agreed.

"I was hoping you would say that. Can you forgive me for what happened today?" he implored.

She nodded. "I'll have to think about it," she smirked.

He smiled sheepishly. "So long as you can forgive me, that's all that matters," he stated, while turning on the car. He backed his car from the lot they were in, and began to drive out.

The rain poured heavily onto the pavement behind, leaving stains of claret smearing onto the cement that was recently occupied.

* * *

**I know... small chapter. As I have stated above, I was planning on continuing this, but I wanted to break this chapter with the next, since it involves the introduction of new- SPOILER ALERT: read the bottom of this footnote for spoiler. I'll try harder to make these chapters longer. I hope the story begins to pick up from here, nonetheless. Any who, PM, review, follow and/or favorite, if you wish for me to continue this story. Love all of you, and I am immensely grateful for all the effort you all make to read this. I appreciate it!**

**SPOILER: Characters**


	5. Distance

**Well, here is the next part of this installment. If anyone is wondering, this was supposed to be meshed together with the third chapter titled, "Claret", but I ended up separating the two, to introduce the new characters in this chapter. So, basically, this is part of the third chapter, but revamped for the fourth. I also added in a bit of the fifth chapter to this one, to extend its length. Hope you guys may like it enough. Enjoy!**

* * *

The scenery takes place, slightly ahead of the mantle. A painting hangs on the wall, its sight much to behold. Painted on its bearings, sits a great man holding a small toy in his hand, while smiling. His grand figure gives nothing away of his daily career. For only a fool would see otherwise.

"Kari, hey Kari!"

A young girl, with light-medium hair, stood in front of the fireplace, viewing the painting the hung above it. She turned to the voice that called her. "Yeah, TK?" she responded.

"Come over here, I want you to see this," he called to her.

She stared at the painting for a few more seconds, before walking towards him. Though the image remained in her head. She didn't know why, but for some reason, the man looked familiar to her. "What is it?" she questioned, as she placed herself beside him.

"Look," he proposed. He was pointing towards a small cradle, with a toy baby in it. "Isn't it weird?"

At first glance, the cradle looked to be like any other part of the mansion, old and dusty. But much to the eyes behold, if one were to look closer, they would see what lied between the baby and the bedding of the cradle.

She leaned over to catch a closer look at what her friend was talking about. Her eyes grew wide. "Oh my gosh," she gasped, holding her hands to her mouth. She stood erect, motionless, while looking at her friend.

"I got scared too, well you know, in the sense that it freaked me out," he tensed. He walked towards where she stood, shaking her a bit. "You okay?"

She regained her composure. "Yeah," she nodded. "It just sort of freaked me out for a bit. I didn't expect anyone to know…," her voice trailed.

He looked at her. "Don't worry too much about it," he chimed, while punching her shoulder playfully. "If anything, it's me who has to worry about it. I mean, I'm the one who still has the nightmares."

She eyed him. "TK…," she shook her head, before placing her hands behind her back. "You have to let go of that memory. It's been what? Six years since it happened."

"Seven," he corrected. He walked over to a nearby chair, dusting it, before he sat. "It's not just that," he grumbled. He leaned against the chair, noticing how creaky it was. "Man this place is old," he stated, quickly changing the subject.

She noticed, but didn't say anything about it. She walked back towards the fireplace, and looked towards the painting again.

He watched as she stared at it. "What are you looking at?" he asked her, after a few seconds passed. "You've been standing there since we entered this room." He got up from the chair and walked over to where she was standing. He stopped once he was beside her. He waited for her to say something, but she continued to look at the painting, motionless. "Who's this?" he asked, finally breaking the silence.

She faced him, finally noticing he was there. "Oh," she yelped. She looked back to the painting. "Do you recognize him?" she asked.

He nodded his head. "No. Why, do you?"

She nodded in return. "No. I just thought he looked familiar. I don't know why. I'm sure I've never seen him."

He looked at her, then the painting, and then back to her. "He just looks like some hiker or lumberjack or something," he stated. He sighed, waiting for her to finish.

She finally peered away after a few minutes passed. She noticed him standing idle. "So, where do you want to go next?" she asked.

He shrugged. "Too be honest Kari, I don't really care anymore."

She looked at him. "Yeah, me neither," she admitted.

He smiled at her. "I thought this place would be fun to check out, especially all the stories that the kids at school make-up, but being in here… it's not so fun," he confessed.

She laughed. "Hyeah," she piped. She brushed a fist close to her mouth.

He loved the way she did that. He shook his head to brush his thoughts away. She noticed.

"You okay TK?" she asked, concerned.

He smiled at her again. "Yeah, it's nothing. Guess all the dust in here is making me feel woozy, that's all," he lied.

She nodded. "Well then we better get out of here. The last thing we need is for you to get allergies," she stated firmly.

He saluted like a soldier. "Yes, ma'am." He barked.

She giggled at it. 'C'mon, let's just go, before anyone notices we're here." She began to walk out of the room. He followed beside her.

As they both were leaving the room, the cradle that rested on the back-corner stood idle, only moving once the enclosure was empty again.

"So, what now," TK asked the girl beside him, as they walked out of the mansion's outer porch. He began to walk down the stairs, being careful with every step he took. She copied his movements.

"I don't know. I told Tai that we'd be out late today. I thought for sure we'd spend more time in there," she stated the last part, while pointing back towards the mansion. Its rickety exterior and rough edges suggested that the mansion had been around for a good many years.

He looked back, almost tripping when did.

'Whoa," she yelped. She had caught him by the collar of his shirt. "Careful TK," she implored. He was heavier than she last remembered.

"Thanks," he expressed, after he regained his composure. "I would've been a goner there, had you not caught me," he exaggerated.

She giggled. "Just be careful next time," she ordered. "I won't always be around," she joked. He laughed at that.

They walked a few more steps down, chatting and laughing every now and then. The leaves blew through the trees, as the wind stirred them, causing the mansion to roar with a most horrendous groan. They both turned quickly, finally acknowledging the mansion's odd appearance.

"Kari," TK whimpered.

"Don't say anything TK," she muttered. She had closed her eyes, but opened them again. She wanted to pretend she wasn't seeing what was in front of her.

"Kari, run," he shouted. He grabbed her by the arm, dragging her along.

She could feel him pull her. "TK wait," she shouted over the sudden wind. It had picked up, causing the trees to move violently.

"We can't!" he shouted back. "Didn't you see those things?" he barked.

She continued running to keep up with him. She didn't know why, but suddenly TK was much faster now, than she remembered. _Is he really scared right now?_ She thought.

They ran through the mansion's outer garden, escaping, as the wind howled over the night. The trees began to stir, and the ground moved in a violent manner. They dragged themselves, running as if their lives depended on it. They didn't know what was happening, but the sudden rush went to their heads.

"TK!" she shouted to him again, after they escaped through the mansion's inner gate. The road down was much longer than they remembered, or at least, it seemed to be that way, as they ran for it.

He shuddered at every sculpture and statue that seemed to move. He closed his eyes to keep from looking at them, while still dragging Kari behind him. It was until he finally felt his hand go free, that he stopped to look back. She was standing behind him, idle. "What are you doing Kari, we have to go now!" he shouted. She continued to remain, idle. It was only after he noticed that she was looking at something in front of him, when he froze.

A strange sound came from behind him, sending chills down both their spines. She was the first to react. "TK," she shouted, running to him to knock him out of his state. He jumped.

"Huh?" He looked at her. He could see the fear in her eyes. He closed his eyes, thinking. _I have to be strong for her_, he chastised himself. He nodded, before grabbing her hand again.

She could feel his hand hold hers. "We have to get out of here," she shouted over the wind. The figure in front of her stood idle, only looking at them.

TK turned around, finally noticing a black shape standing at the front of the gate. Rain began to pour heavily unto the ground before them. A streak of lightning flashed a little ways over the figure, revealing the colors of the man. He was faceless. They watched in horror as the figure lunged towards them.

"Run," TK shouted to her, dragging her again, back into the mansion's grounds.

She did her best to keep up with him, while trying to catch her breathe. She was shocked. A man with no face was chasing them down, in some forbidden mansion, in the middle of the night. "How cliché," she couldn't help but think.

They ran a little ways, before stopping behind a bush, they were sure, was hidden behind a good amount of trees. It was the only place they could find, that wasn't in the open, or violently blown by the wind and rain.

The mansion groaned with the sound of wood tapping, and glass shattering. They could hear sounds coming from inside the garden, watching in horror as figures appeared on the mansions windows, before disappearing after every flash of lightning.

"I'm no expert, but I hardly think lightning hits so many times in the same area," TK groaned. He was watching as the figures danced around the frames of the windows, before vanishing into nothing. Then he heard it. Footsteps coming from outside the garden. They were barely audible, but he was sure it was from the weird man. He knew Kari could hear them as well, because he felt her hold his arm tightly.

"TK," she whimpered.

A shock went up his spine, when she said his name. He shook his head, while pressing her closer down the bush. "Shh," he whispered. He crouched down, closer to the ground. _What the hell's happening!_ He thought.

The lightning continued to flash, as the wind began to pick up, violently throwing foliage around. They both were terrified, hoping that a sudden nightmare such as this would go away.

The sound of footsteps began to draw near. The wind howled through the currents, and the black shadows behind the windows continued to watch them, as they hid behind the bush.

"Do you think they could see us?" Kari whispered. She kept looking back every now and then, hoping that they couldn't.

He nodded his head in confusion. "I don't know," he muttered. He was as scared as her. He could feel her shake, but chose to remain strong. _I have to be_, he thought with aggravation. The footsteps drew nearer, and his breath became shorter as his heartbeat increased. He closed his eyes, once he heard the footsteps directly in front of him.

A few moments passed without a sound, other than the wind and rain. He began to wonder, whether it was all in his head. Then he heard it.

"TK," a girl screamed.

He quickly opened his eyes, only to find himself face-to-face with a faceless man. He backed up quickly, landing on his butt, as he watched the man stretch upwards. He was horrified.

"TK, help!" the girl screamed again. He recognized it.

"Kari," he shouted over the wind. He quickly stood up, noticing the faceless figure standing several feet away. _How'd he get there so fast?_ He thought. Lightning flashed again, revealing the faceless figure, with something in his arm. His eyes grew wide. _Not something_, he thought, _someone._ He ran towards the man, hoping that his initial thought was wrong.

As he caught up with the man, he noticed the figure standing idle.

"TK, over here," a voice shouted from the man's side.

He peered over, and found Kari, strapped to the figure's arm, wherever that may be. "Kari," he shouted. He made the motion to grab her, but the figure stirred again. It lunged upwards, carrying Kari tightly in his arm.

TK looked high and low, searching for the faceless man. He had lost him when he jumped, his shape camouflaging with the darkness. He ran towards the front of the mansion, jumping pass several cracks that painted the mansion's grounds.

As he dashed towards the road that led to the front of the mansion, another lightning flashed. It was only for a moment, but he saw the same figure as it leaped passed the walls and trees.

"What the hell are you?" he barked into the air. His adrenaline rushed, as he ran to where he thought the figure was going. Pausing every now and then, to run where he hoped he saw a body move.

"C'mon, Kari, yell or something," he pleaded. He had been standing at the front of the gate, looking both left and right for any sign of movement.

"TK!" a voice yelled from a distance.

His eyes widened, before he made a dash to where the voice echoed. He ran through the open streets, ignoring the rain as it poured on him heavily. He heard a few echoes more, before the voice stopped all-together. It was passed midnight when he finally came to an empty parking lot, wondering where his friend could be. "Kari!" he shouted once more, panting. His vision began to blur. He watched as a car drove away, its taillights creating a glimmer of light, before disappearing into the night.

He felt a sharp pain at his leg. He rolled up his pant, caressing his skin, and groaning as his hand tugged at a newly created wound. The blood smeared onto the pavement, leaving behind a small river of claret coloring onto the pavement.

The rain danced around him, as his head began to feel dizzy. He managed to walk over to a nearby clearing, which sheltered him from the rain. As he sat, he called into the air once more: "Kari," before blacking out.

* * *

"Stop it, Matt," a girl pressed, at her soon-to-be (she hoped) boyfriend. She had been undressing in her bedroom, but found it difficult when a boy kept trying to creep up on her. "I said stop," she giggled over the door. She locked it, before he could open it again. She could hear him groan, before walking down the stairs. "Serves him right, trying to look at a girl undress." She skimped out of her raggedy dress (as she put it), throwing it aside harshly. "I'll just to have to rip you up later," she threatened the lifeless fabric.

She walked towards her closet, revealing pairs of matching shirts, pants and shoes; along with some accessories and other-wear. "Hmm," she pondered. "What to wear, what to wear? AH," she cried. "Just the perfect thing for a "fancy" theatre." She said fancy in a snobby way. Though she loved the latest fashion, the best accessories and the loveliest objects; a place like the theatre, despites its luxurious atmosphere, was something she felt was out of taste and time. She adored the musicals, however.

She took out a golden-laced dress, with small straps that carried itself by the waist and back. "This'll do just right," she cried with glee, as she held the dress high. She walked over to her bathroom, quickly changing into the dress. After a few minutes of tugging and pulling, she finally managed to get it through.

"Now, for some lipstick and eye-liner,' she cried, after lacing a pair of heels onto her feet. She walked to her bathroom, quickly applying the lipstick, but second-guessing the liner. "Hmm… maybe not," she stated aloud. She contemplated whether applying eye-liner on a rainy day was worth it. "Well, Matt won't mind," she said to herself. Finally convinced, she placed the eye-liner back in her purse, but not before a pair of photos managed to ease their way out. She picked them up to look at them. They were from Matt's concert.

She smiled. "Stupid Matt," she giggled. The photo she was looking at was the one Sora had taken for her and Matt as they stood in-front of a clown, who seemed to be smiling happily at them. He was holding a heart-shaped rubber balloon, high on their heads. She eyed the photo a little longer, before placing it behind the second one.

She gazed at the second photo more intently, narrowing her eyes at its contents. The photo showed her and a brown-haired boy standing in-front of a dark background, smiling. She noticed the glimmer of surprise in his face. "Tai," she breathed. She closed her eyes and sighed, before placing the photos back in her purse.

She stood, her back turned against the wall-mirror, while leaning against the bathroom counter. She held her head to her hands, feeling a small tear come out from her left eye. She made no attempt to swipe it.

"Mimi," a voice called, interrupting her state. Startled by the shout, she accidentally dropped the lipstick she was holding. It had cracked on the floor. "Oh," she groaned while bending down to pick up the lipstick. Before being able to grab it, she stopped. She noticed a white glimmer, sticking out from the end of the lipstick, where it had cracked. "What the?" she muttered. She picked up the tube of lipstick, holding it from the end, while trying to separate it, by the crack.

After much deliberation later, she finally managed to pull it apart. A tiny folded paper landed on the palm of her hand. She gazed at it, wondering what it was doing inside her lipstick. She un-scrolled the tiny parchment, revealing two phrases. "I love you. Always and Forever," she read aloud. She pondered on it.

"Mimi," a voice shouted again. "Oh," she moaned, unhappy about it interrupting her focus. She was sure; she was starting to piece together what the two phrases meant. "Stupid Matt, always choosing the perfect time to open his big mouth," she angrily grumbled. She shoved the paper and tube into her purse, before heading out her room. "What!" she yelled, as she stood directly on the top of the stairs, facing down. A blonde-haired boy peeped out from the corner.

He grinned at her. "Hey, Meems, you ready to go yet?" he called to her.

She sighed. Not wanting to stay mad at him for no important reason, she grinned. "Yeah!" she yelped. "Let me just get my purse, then we can leave."

He grinned back. "Good, cause' the last thing I need is for us to be late," he shouted to her. "Late for what?" he could hear her shout from the room. "You still want to go to that restaurant you like?" he yelled back. He could hear footsteps running towards the stairs.

"You mean we're still going to _Treasure's_?" she questioned, with excitement in her voice.

He could see her eyes glowing, even from the bottom of the stairs. "The one and only," he chuckled.

She smiled, and spoke in valley-girl-speech as she made her way downstairs.

"Jeez, Meems, we're not even in the restaurant yet, and already you're creating malfeasance," he joked.

She gave him a knowing grin. "Say whatever you want Ishida, but wait till' I see the look on you face when you're paying for the meal."

He looked at her. "I'm paying for all of it?" he questioned.

"Well, what do you think? You can't honestly expect a girl to pay for the meal?" She gave him a playful smirk.

"Do you know how much this night's gonna' cost me?" he asked. "First, I paid for the reservation and now I have to—,"

"You got us reservations?" she chimed. "When? A reservation to _Treasure's_, is like, next to impossible." She spoke again in valley-girl style.

He grinned at her. "A few months back," he stated coolly. "I knew I would need this, and you know… well I know how much you like this restaurant, so I booked one up around March."

"March," she gasped. "That's like three months back." She paused, her face giving a questioning expression. "Wait," she began, "Matt, you've only asked me out on the first date yesterday. So, how is it that…," she thought about it. Her face glowed. "Oh my gosh, you planned to ask me out for three months," she cried. She held her hand to her mouth.

He smiled sheepishly. "Longer actually," he admitted. "I just thought that taking you to your favorite restaurant was the best choice. I hear they have the best meals passed midnight." He shot her a wink.

She smirked at him. "You're so freaking stupid, but I like you for it," she remarked. She pushed him a little with her shoulder, before strapping her purse tightly to her arm.

He smiled at her, before regaining his cool. "Okay," he stammered, "let's get out of here, before we end up spending the evening at your house."

"It's passed evening, Matt," she corrected. She walked in front of him as they headed out the front door.

"Whatever," he shot coolly, while closing the door behind him. The door clicked, as the lock sat in place. The windows and doors remained closed. A breeze blew in, moving the indoor plants, before fading away; leaving behind, a sense of sudden emptiness.

* * *

**That's it for this chapter. As anyone can see, there is a slight break between the part where TK faints, and Mimi is talking to Matt. Imagine like in a chapter book, where the next part is spaced a certain amount of lines, to indicate the change of scenes. I added in a line, and spaced it a bit, to help anyone identify it easily. Hope it isn't too unethical or unpleasing to the eyes. Anyways, please don't forget to review, PM, follow and/or favorite, if you like this story, and wish for me to continue it. Every bit of support helps!**


	6. Mystery

**I introduce the 5th chapter to this wonderful story, that I'm actually having fun writing. I have so many ideas about how I want this to go. Anyways, hope you guys can tread through this one, before the real adventure starts soon. Some important stuff is here though, that will be used (along with previous chapter content), that have remained mysterious- like that "between the baby and bedding" tidbit, as one reader/member so nicely put it. Any who, I hope many of you can enjoy. I made this chapter a little longer than usual for this story. Also, if any of you notice many grammar, and dialogue mistakes (especially towards the bottom) it's because I was extremely sleep as I wrote the last 25% or so of this chapter. I mean, _real_ sleepy. I had to post this though so I trudged on. Anyways, enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Digimon, or any related affiliations. I do own anything original. **

* * *

Through the night, it all began to stir. The moon shed its light on the road below, encompassing all within its radiance. Though darkness enshrouded the appearance of everything, it could not hide the silhouettes that formed by the shimmering face of her luminance.

Noises of nearby insects vibrated, echoing through the hallow streets. Taps of water, spills of drops danced off the veranda, giving life to what wasn't there. The aroma of a nearby bakery shop spread, as the last remnants of the earlier nights cooking distilled the air.

All was as a raining night should be- showering its way, down the pavement off Chasseur Ave. Though for this night, all was not where it should have been, as a figure roamed the lane of this empty boulevard. It jumped through the roofs of nearby buildings, hanging by the edges of their attached sign posts. As it swung from structure to structure, it gave off a silent roar, which would send chills into any creatures' heart.

The figure lunged past several more shops, before finally coming to the front of a famous lot. It grinned a most terrible smile, while it held onto something. It flung the object onto its shoulder, as it made its way into the building. The form disappeared behind closed doors, its secret veiled, from the world.

The night's sound of rustling and movement, which had paused on account of the figure, resumed its latent clamor. For, no one could have known, what went on behind the street of Chasseur Ave, on the still night of June the 12th.

* * *

**Chapter Break:**

"More wine, sir?" a well-dressed man asked, as he approached a couple who were seated within the formal restaurant. He was amused by their silence, already guessing he had interrupted a private, and pivotal, conversation; though his secret glee remained hidden by a most professional façade.

The young man looked to him, showing a most appreciative smile. "No thanks," he replied, while waving his hand. "I need to drive this pretty girl home," he stated coolly, while pointing at a young woman, who was busy digging through her purse.

The man nodded and gave them a final bow, before walking to another table. "Phew," the young man sighed. "I can't believe it. That was a close one." He looked to the woman who sat beside him. "Hey, try not to be so loud next time," he stated, while placing his arm close to her plate.

The woman continued looking through her purse, giving him no clue as to whether she was listening or not.

"Mimi, are you listening?" he chided.

She looked up. "Yes, Matt." She resumed her search, peering away from his stare.

He let out a small breathe of air. Several seconds passed, before he spoke again. "What are you looking for?" he asked her. He was curious to know, what she was searching for that made her so oblivious.

"Something," she parried, while continuing to look through the bag.

"Mind telling me what _it_ is?" he asked. He scooted closer to her, making sure she wasn't trying to hide anything. His suspicion was marred, when she didn't bother to conceal the contents within her bag.

"It's a tiny paper. I put it right here, next to my lipstick," she vexed. She pulled out a tiny tube, which was severely chipped from the end. "It was inside this piece of garbage," she ridiculed the tube, while holding it up high for him to see.

"A paper?" he questioned. "Are you serious?" he chuckled. He wondered whether she was bored with him, that she was willing to make up stories about hidden papers.

"Don't laugh Matt," she retorted. "I _am_ serious." She glowered at him.

"Okay, okay," he reiterated, while holding his hands up. "We'll find the stupid paper. I got to ask though," he wondered, "what's so important about a tiny piece of paper?"

She eyed him. "It's not that it's important," she admitted. "It's just that I found it underneath this lipstick," she finished, while handing him the plastic tube.

He grabbed it, peering through the hole on the end. "So, what about it?" he finally stated. He placed the tube next to her plate.

"Well," she uttered, "for one: it was at the bottom of my lipstick, before it cracked. And second: there was some writing on it." She picked-up the lipstick-tube from the table and placed it at the front of her purse. She noticed a photo slightly sticking out from the corner. Recognizing the picture, she carefully pushed it in, before he could notice.

"What was written on the paper?" he continued, oblivious to her sly movements.

"A weird phrase," she bluntly stated, while placing her hands on his, as they rested on the table. She watched as he looked at her, giving her a soft-smile. She wondered whether he was like this only with her, or with everyone else now.

"Well?" he asked, interrupting her thoughts.

"Hm, oh," she yelped. "I don't know, it said something along the lines, 'I love you. Always and Forever'," she repeated the phrase in its exactness. She continued to hold his hand.

He made a sheepish look of confusion. "That's weird," he stated. "And you said that you found it at the bottom of your lipstick." He saw her nod.

"I didn't find it under it. I found it inside." She saw him give her another questioning look. "I accidentally dropped it while I was changing in the bathroom. It cracked a little, and that's when I noticed a paper sticking out. So I yanked it apart" she stated the last part forcefully, while making a gesture with her hands.

He smiled at that. "You're cute," he interjected.

She looked at him, stunned by his sudden remark. Quickly regaining her poise, she shot him a smirk. "Oh, so I see someone's trying to change the subject?" she giggled.

He pushed her playfully. "Yup!" he admitted. "It gets kind of boring talking about lipstick, mysterious papers and crap," he remarked coolly.

She chuckled. "I suppose, but still…," she trailed, while holding her hand to her head. She was thinking.

He watched as she fiddled with her fingers. He assumed she was counting, but for what? He had no clue. Growing bored as the time passed, he looked over to the people who were busy eating, talking and laughing. They were exchanging smiles, some even holding hands or cups in the air. The atmosphere of the restaurant really brought out the best in people. _It's times like these that I'm lucky to know what real friendship is like,_ he thought. A lull of music played from the background, bringing in a sense of calm.

"Hey, Matt," Mimi chimed in.

He looked to her, his previous fixation interrupted. "Yeah?" he queried. He brought his attention back to the caramel-haired girl with pink streaks.

"What's the number of Tai's phone?" she asked.

"Tai's number?" he repeated. "Why, would you want his phone number, Meems?" he questioned with curiosity. He shot her a look, while raising his eyebrows.

She shook her head, while waving a hand at him. "Forget it," she remarked in impatience. "I'll just search for it myself," she stated. She began to scroll through her phone, until she found his number.

He watched as she punched in Tai's number, wondering why? _She's been acting strange since we came to this restaurant, _he thought. "Hey, Tai," he heard her say. "It's Mimi; please call me back when you get this message. I have something urgent to tell you." He continued to look at her, gazing as she clicked the phone, before placing it in her purse. "So, what was that about?' he asked irritably. He hated when Mimi always left him in the dark.

She sensed his sudden mood, and to help him elevate from it, she took out a small roll of ink encased in glass, from her pocket. "Look," she commanded, while handing him the roll of ink.

He took it from her hand, gazing at the small roll, while spinning it at different angles. "What?" he finally asked, after finding nothing inside the small glass-encased ink bottle.

She rolled her eyes. "Not the ink, numb-nuts," she vexed. She twisted the bottle from its side, holding it upside down as she did. She placed it on the palm of his hand, for him to see clearly. "Do you see it now?" she asked.

He gazed at the small glass bottle, eyeing its shape. The liquid-ink inside, oozed to the cap, revealing tiny words sprawled across the back of the label, which had been stickered. He read it aloud: "_Come to the Ball of Sir Casper and his Wife, Mistress Melody."_ After reading the tiny words, he looked up to her in surprise. "Where'd you find this?" he asked, while holding the bottle up. It was the only thing he could think to ask at the moment.

She shrugged. "I bought it from some store along with this lipstick and…," she began, while holding out the same tube that she showed him earlier. She began to take out other make-up products, and laid them out on the table. "This and this and this," she continued.

He eyed the products that rested before him: a tube of lipstick, the bottle of black ink, a circular blush-case, a bottle of face wash, and a medium box filled with different color assortments. He grabbed the face wash. He flipped it, thinking there would be something sprawled at the back of it, much like the glass of ink. There was. Though he expected it, he couldn't help but feel uneasy about it. "Look," he shuddered, while holding the bottle close to her face.

She leaned over, to have a closer look at the bottle. Hidden within the bed of orange liquid and micro-beads, were two words spread out on the sticker label. She read them aloud: "_Modern Age". _She looked to the young man sitting beside her.

He shrugged, already guessing what she was thinking. He picked up the next product, as she did too. He held the small blush-case, noticing how it remained unused, as the bed of soft powder looked to be untouched. Unable to find anything, he began to hold it at different angles, removing the soft-blush (thing… I don't know that much about make-up stuff… I'm so sorry) from the object. He couldn't find anything. Growing tired of looking, he turned his attention to the young woman beside him. "Any luck?" he asked, while letting out a sigh.

She nodded her head. "Yeah, look," she commanded. She repeated the same maneuver, holding the box of colors (the one with the powdery stuff inside, I don't know what it's called, but my sister had one before) close to his face. "There," she pointed for him, at the top of the right corner.

He squinted, barely able to make out the small letters inscribed at the top. "_A Diamond For Her Every Suitor_". He blinked his eyes, after having strained them.

"Weird huh?" she queried, while placing the medium-case back on the table. She saw hid nod. He was still rubbing his eyes. She giggled. "So, what did yours say?" she asked.

He blinked, before looking at her. "I don't know," he shrugged. "I couldn't find anything. Maybe that ones a dud," he joked, while pointing to the small circular-blush.

She grabbed it from the table, eyeing its contents. She opened the lid, tapping the ware, causing a few drops of powder to fall on her dress. "Oh," she groaned, while dropping the case on the table. Its contents spilled everywhere on the surface. "Stupid make-up," she remarked, while she dusted the powder off her dress.

He watched as she dusted herself, letting out a small chuckle. He then grabbed the blush from the table, noticing black ink marked within the powder. He began to scratch it, leaving tiny marks of make-up inside his fingernails. "Hey, Mimi, look," he stated seriously. His voice was an octave lower.

She finished dusting her dress off, before she looked up. "Huh?" was all she said.

He leaned the case over. "I think I found the phrase. It's inside all this powder," he stated the last part, while circling it with his finger.

She snatched it from his hand, peering at it intently. "Oh, it is," she breathed. She began scratching where he left off, mouthing the words aloud as she read them: "Her… Hour… Has Yet… To… Come." She batted her eyes. "What the heck does that mean?" she asked.

He shrugged. "I have no idea." He leaned over to give her a hug, while placing an arm around her neck. "But, if it helps, I can try to figure out the second one," he proclaimed.

She eyed him. "Second one of what?"

He smiled at her. "The one with the black ink. You know? The one with the names, Casper and Melody?"

She looked at him. Her memory suddenly returned to her. "Oh," she gasped. "The names that are also in that theatre that Sora and Kari like so much?"

He nodded to her. He stopped holding her, and sat back in his original spot. "So, it's settled then. We're going to the theatre after all." He raised his hand to call a waiter over for the check. A man nodded to him, indicating that he'll be right over.

She grinned at him, once he lowered his hand. "I always did want to visit that theatre," she stated, while looking at him. "Sora's been asking me for the longest. She wants to go see some stupid play." She grabbed a napkin from its holder, patting her mouth to clean it.

A waiter walked over to their table, taking out a small paper and a notepad. "Will, that be all for you today sir?" he asked the young man in the seat. Matt nodded his head. "Very well, here is your receipt." He placed the wax-paper on the table, which had been folded several times to enclose the charge within. The man gave them a bow, before leaving.

He opened the receipt, his eyes growing wide, after reading the payment amount. He sighed, while reaching into his pocket. He took out his wallet, and began to divide the money.

She giggled. "So how much is it?" she asked.

He looked at her, with a frown on his face.

"That bad, huh?" she joked.

"See it for yourself," he remarked, while sliding her the receipt.

She picked it up, her eyes, mimicking Matt's expression. "You want me to pay half?" she queried. She felt bad at the amount he was paying. _No restaurant should cost this much,_ she thought.

He waved a hand at her. 'Its fine," he shot coolly. "A guys gotta' do what a guys gotta do, right?" he declared.

She beamed at him. 'Seriously, Matt. I can help you pay for this," she stated while holding the receipt up. She was amazed at his sudden generosity.

"Hey, hey, hey," he reiterated. He quickly lowered her hand. "No one's supposed to see how much I'm paying for this dinner," he remarked.

She looked at him. "Matt, it's probably a compliment, considering how much you're paying." She saw him smirk at her. She rolled her eyes. "Fine," she stated defeated. "Pay for all of it, I don't care." She dropped the receipt close to him.

He picked it up, quickly crunching it in his hand. "That's better," he charmed. He leaned over to kiss her in the forehead. "Let's go, before I get charged for being here after getting the payment," he joked.

She chuckled. She raised herself, her dress flowing down, while a breeze blew by.

He looked at her, his hormones reacting. "You're beautiful," he remarked.

She looked at him, while smiling. "Thanks. You're not so bad looking yourself," she stated coolly. She saw him smirk. They began to walk over to the front of the restaurant, stopping in front of the register.

"Will, that be all for you today?" a man in a black vest, white collared shirt, and red tie, asked them. They nodded. "Very well. May I see your receipt sir?" the man inquired.

He handed it to him, along with several good numbered bills. He winced as the man grabbed the money and the receipt.

She watched him, silently laughing at his expression. _Don't worry Matt_, she thought. _I'll make it up to you in more ways than one._ She saw the man hand back the receipt, while placing the money in the register. She smiled at Matt, before the both walked out of the restaurant. As they walked over to his car, she began to say something, but he interrupted her.

"I've been meaning to ask you," he shot suddenly. He didn't want her to discuss anything about the amount paid. He saw her eye him, so he continued. "Where'd you get all that make-up junk at?" They walked several steps, before she finally answered.

She stopped at the front of the car, as she waited for him to open the door. "A place in Pawn St. At some store called _Bella's_," she finally replied, after he opened the door for her. She sat inside, while he closed the passenger door, and walked over to the opposite side of the vehicle.

"Do you wonder if all their products have that?" he asked, after getting in the car with her. He strapped his seat-belt on.

She copied him. "I don't know," she admitted. "I just bought a basket case that was on special. It was the only one."

He looked at her, his eyebrows furrowing. "Really?" he remarked.

She shrugged. "Some woman kept pestering me about buying it. She kept saying things that sounded promising, like: buy this and this'll happen. I didn't believe her, but a sale on some good products… that's another story," she finished.

He rolled his eyes. "Only you, Mimi," he jokingly remarked.

She shot him a playful punch. "Shut up, Matt," she joked.

He smiled at her, before turning on the car. He drove out of the lot, before finally tuning a corner, and heading off to the famous theatre.

* * *

**Chapter Break:**

"Help," she shouted into the air. "Someone help me, please," she shouted again. A girl stood behind a curtain, enclosed between metal bars. She was holding out her hand, hoping to find something to grab in the darkness. It was no use. There was simply nothing she could do.

She let out a small whimper, before retreating back into the darkness. She sat down, while cradling herself. She held her hands to her knees. _I can't cry_, she thought. _Not right now. Not right now_! She repeated. She closed her eyes. _I have to be strong_. She shook a little, partially due to the cold, but as well, due to fear. "Please," she murmured, "someone help me."

* * *

**_Paragraph Break:_**

He opened his eyes, noting the pain that shot from his leg. "AH! Dammit'," he groaned, while slamming his fist against the pavement. His leg had been injured when he had chased the shadowy figure down the street. He couldn't remember exactly where it happened, but it did nonetheless. He stood up from his position, while holding on to his knees for support.

The blood that soaked from the wound had dried, much to his surprise. He looked at the ground before him, noticing brown stains on it. _My blood must've smeared while it was raining_. He rubbed his eyes, before heading out past the small clearing, where he fainted. He looked up and noticed the dawn, as it broke through the horizon. He smiled at that.

"Time to look for Kari," he muttered. He began to limp, as he walked out of the back of the building, making his way to where he last saw the mysterious figure move. As he strolled through the avenue, he noticed a few pedestrians staring at him, noting the blood stained on his cargo shorts. He blushed, but kept moving, ignoring their stares. As he walked, his leg began to sting, causing him to wince. He knew it wasn't a large or serious wound, but it still hurt.

Upon entering a small park, he noticed a couple sitting by a bench. He walked over to them. "Excuse me," he began, as he approached the couple. They looked at him in astonishment. His muddy appearance made them uneasy. "Can you help me," he begged. He noticed the bewilderment on their eyes.

"Are you hurt?" the man was the first to ask. He looked to be old-aged, with a medium stature. Average in length, with brown hair and eyes, he was wearing a two-piece suit. He looked to the boy who stood in front of him, wondering what had caused this to him. The woman beside him, held him closer.

TK wondered whether she was afraid of him. "Not really, but I do need directions," he responded. He remained where he stood making no motion to lean in closer to the couple.

They raised an eye, noting the blood on his shorts. The man eyed him carefully. "Are you sure. You have blood on your clothes," he pressed.

He nodded to them. "Yeah. It was just a cut, but it's healed now. Just some blood stained my short, that's all," he stated nervously. He was growing a little uneasy, but he was still too out-of-it to care. "Anyways, can you guys help me?" he asked. He wanted to get moving. Kari was the only thing on his mind.

The man eyed him wearily, but shook his head. "If you say so, young man. Where do you need to go?" he asked.

The blonde looked at him, noticing the woman holding his arm tightly. He shrugged it off. "I need to get to _Caliph Boulevard_."

The man eyed him. "I'm sorry son, but I don't know any _Caliph Boulevard_." He stated. His eyes were drawn in. He seemed tired.

"I do," the woman beside him finally spoke up. She looked poignant.

TK observed her. He detected a form of hostility in her voice, but disregarded it. "You do?" he asked hopeful, despite his previous observation.

She nodded. "Its a little ways over between _Imperial Lane_ and another street, I can't seem to remember the name," she spoke, while holding a finger to her head. "Eh, close to that famous district, what's it called?" she croaked.

"Ah, yes," the man interrupted. "I seem to recall it dearest." He patted her hand. "Mm… it was Gallivant something or was it something gallivant…," he trailed. He was thinking.

TK waited patiently, hoping the man would remember soon. He didn't know why, but before chasing the figure, the previous night, he was sure he knew where he was at. Now here he was, lost in the middle of the suburbs.

"It's the _Gallivant of Surprise_, you old fool," the woman stated aloud, interrupting TK's thoughts.

"Ah, yes," he wheezed. "Where they hold that famous parade every year," he mused. There was a smile on his face.

He eyed the old couple, smiling at them. Despite the woman's slight discrimination against his appearance, he suddenly didn't mind. Seeing an old couple out, on a sunny day at the park made him feel safer for some reason.

A few children ran by chasing a dog, who seemed to be holding a Frisbee in his mouth. He didn't notice it at first, but there was a child standing next to him, eyeing him, without any notion to hide it. "Are you okay?" the little boy suddenly asked.

TK turned towards the small child. He smiled at him. "Yeah," he replied. "It's just a little stain, nothing big," he assured to the boy, while pointing to his shorts.

The little boy nodded. "No, not that," he voiced, while shaking his head.

He looked at him in confusion. "What do you mean?" he asked. He was careful not to sound too forceful.

"It's your face," he responded.

TK saw as the little boy made a motion with his hands. He leaned in closer, crouching to be at the small boy's level. "My face?" he questioned him, while pointing at his own head.

The little boy nodded. "It looks sad," he breathed. "My daddy always has that look now. Ever since, the day my mommy died."

He gasped in shock by the small child's powerful insight. He leaned in closer to the boy, almost sitting. "Well, I lost someone close to me too," he admitted to him. "And I'm trying to get her back."

The child smiled. "You lost your mommy too?" he asked with curiosity.

He nodded back. "No, but I did lose a girl. Just not my mom," he chuckled.

"Ah, young love," the old-man finally spoke up.

TK turned quickly, eyeing the old man. "I'm not in love," he denied.

"You say that now," he mused, "but eventually, you'll see. Love always brings two people together, even though the two may not know it at the time." He smiled at him, his face crumpling from age.

He winced at the thought. _But I'm not_, he thought. _At least, I can't be_. "Travis, Travis come here!" a voice shouted from the distance. Interrupted from his thoughts, he quickly turned around to find a rosy-cheeked girl with long auburn hair and pink streaks calling the little boy. She reminded him of Mimi.

She walked over, fuming. "What do you think you're doing talking to a stranger?" she shouted at the small child, as she approached him. The boy looked scared. "And you," she pointed at TK, "what do you think you're doing talking to my little brother?"

He looked at her, dazed. "Wha—,"

"Have you no decency?' she vexed. "To think, that a homeless man would talk to a child," she told herself.

"Homeless?" he asked. "I'm not homeless." He looked at her in confusion.

She blinked at him. "You're not?" She say him nod. She blushed a little, before turning away. Several seconds passed, before she turned to look back at him. "I'm so sorry. It's just that, your appearance looks so…," she trailed.

He grinned sheepishly. "Oh, sorry about this," he stated, while gesturing towards his clothes. "I just had a rough time last night," he stated.

"Oh," she perked with curiosity.

"Sisie, do we have to go home now?" the little boy chimed in. They both stared at him.

The girl looked like she was about to say something, but the old-couple on the bench jumped in, before she could.

"Don't punish the little one," the old-woman chimed. "He was simply telling this young man here, about his father. That's all," she stated, while pointing to TK.

TK chuckled at that. _She makes it sound like it isn't wrong to do that_, he secretly thought.

The girl blinked her eyes. She stared back at her brother, and sighed. "No," she finally submitted. "But next time, promise me you won't talk to strangers, okay?" she scolded him. He nodded back to her. "Good, and don't talk about dad. It's rude to tell strangers about family matters, you got that Travis?"

TK saw the boy nod again. "Now, go over there, and play with China and the rest of them," he saw her point. "I'll be there in a sec," he heard her finish. He watched as the young boy ran off to where a gathering of children and one dog were playing.

She looked back at him. "I guess, I'll be seeing you then," she expressed while holding out a hand.

He looked at her. "Go on, shake it," he heard her demand. He shook it, before placing his hands to his side again.

"Don't be so awkward about it," she giggled. "Do it like this," she clamored. She reached over, grabbing his hand, while holding it firmly in hers. She began to shake with authority.

He chuckled. She _may dress like Mimi, but she certainly doesn't act like her_, he thought. "Was that a good one?" he expressed softly.

"Yup!" she clamored. "So, what's your name by the way," she asked.

"It's Takeru, but mostly everyone calls me T.K.," he replied. He wondered whether he was getting _too_ comfortable. He still needed to look for Kari.

"T.K., huh," she repeated. "Nice name you got there, I suppose."

He looked at her. She was awfully cheery for someone who just accused him recently of being a homeless man. He saw her lean in closer.

"You're kind of cute," she admitted suddenly, leaning in close to his face.

He could feel her breath hit his face. He backed up a little to avoid anything inappropriate from happening. Not that he thought anything would.

"If it weren't your raggedy look," she continued, "I'd probably date ya," she joked. She held her hands to her back, while smiling.

He furrowed his brows. "Um…," he began.

"Just kidding," the girl clamored. "But you're cute, nonetheless."

He saw her give him another grin. "Um…," he tried again. "I'm sorry to cut this short, but I kind of have to go." He rubbed the back of his head.

She eyed him. "Oh," she began. "I'm sorry; I didn't realize I was keeping you from something." She blushed a little.

"It's not a big deal," he quickly shot. "I just have to find someone, and it's kind of urgent."

"Oh… well I can help you look if you want," she offered.

He looked at her in surprise. "Why, would you help me? Just a few minutes ago, you looked like you were about to kill me or something." He gave her a smirk, before turning towards the bench. He saw the old couple standing from where they were sitting, ready to leave. They waved him a good-bye and he waved back. There went his last chance at finding more information from them, he thought.

She shrugged. "Like I said, you're cute. And besides, I have nothing better to do in this park anyways." Oblivious to the couple, she turned to look at the kids playing, before looking back at TK.

He faced her again. "I'm not looking for someone in this park though," he admitted. He saw her face him. "No?" he heard her say. "Nope," he repeated. "I just needed directions. That's why I was asking that old couple for some, but they just left." He was pointing towards the bench.

"Oh… oh my gosh I'm so sorry. It's my fault isn't it? I interrupted you guys, and—,"

"No-no," he reiterated, while holding his hands up. "It's not your fault. You didn't know." He looked at her with a reassuring look. Hew saw her smile at him, while tilting her head to the side. It made him chuckle.

"At least let me make it up to you," she stated. "I kind of feel bad now."

"Well, unless you can take me to some place called, "Gallivanting Surprise District, or the whatever the heck it's called, then—,"

"Oh you mean the _District of No Return_," she cooed, while wiggling her fingers.

He eyed her. "What?" he questioned. He wasn't sure whether she was following what he was saying. _Maybe she is like Mimi, after all,_ he thought.

"It's a name a couple of the kids, including my friends, made up at school. The district is famous for holding some parade called the, _Gallivants or Gallivanting Surprise_, every year. I can't believe you don't know about that. It's only like the most famous thing in this small town."

He shrugged. "Well, I just moved here about a few months back, so…,"

She pursed her lips. "Well, that explains it," she chuckled. "Anyways," she continued, already wanting to change the subject. "If you need to get to the district, well its more a plaza…," she shook her head again. "Anyways," she repeated, chastising herself for digressing, "if you need to get to the "district", I can take you."

He eyed her. "Really?" he smiled. He saw her nod. "Yeah, but first I need to tell my little brother that we're leaving. And second," she glanced at him, "we need to get you changed. I have a spare of men's clothes in my car if you need to borrow them."

He grinned. "Thanks," he expressed. "Although, I'm wondering. Why are you helping me so suddenly? It's kind of weird that you would help a complete stranger, who you just barely met." He stated the last part slowly.

She beamed. "Like I said, I feel bad for you. Not just that," she continued. "I also genuinely want to help you. You seem like nice guy, and I don't know… I guess I just want to really help a good guy out."

"I suppose," he breathed. "How would you know if I'm not a stalker or killer or something," he joked.

She looked at him, nodding her head in disapproval. "You don't strike me as anything, but odd. If at that," she batted. "Besides, I want to get to know you more."

He sensed something ambiguous in her statement, but shrugged it off. "Well, if you really want to help me, I suppose I won't say no," he remarked, with a little uncertainty. He wasn't completely sure if he was okay taking an offer from her.

"Great," she mused. "I'll just go get my brother." She began to tread off, but stopped when she felt a hand grab her arm. She turned around.

"I'm sorry to ask this, but do you have a cell phone I can borrow?" he asked her. He wondered whether she would say no, considering he barely met her.

"Sure," she cried. "I just have to go get my purse. But, um… why?"

"Oh, I just need to call a friend. I need to sort of update him on a few things," he stated, while wanting to remain discreet.

She raised a hand. "Say no more. I understand." She began to head over to where the kids were playing. She turned when she noticed he wasn't following her. "You coming?" she asked.

He nodded, and stood beside her, as they walked towards the children.

The sun rose that morning, bringing in a new dawn into another day. For, every morning did it herald the chance to start something new. No one knew this better, than a girl who looked up at the sky, from a small hole. Wondering whether she'd ever be saved. "Can anyone help me, please," she cried. A tear glided down her cheek, holding with it every fiber of her being. For, fear was her only companion in the place where she now lay. Hoping someone would soon notice, her absence.

* * *

**Well, in case anyone is wondering: the unnamed girl that T.K. is talking to. Her personality, despite her weird dialogue at times, she is actually based off a real person. I knew this girl who acted that way a few years back, and she was like nice to me and stuff. Eventually, I figured at why (not really, she told me) which is what I'm going to make happen here as well. Just, I haven't yet. Any who, as many of you have noticed, I placed things called "chapter" and "paragraphs" breaks to help indicate when the change of scenery/characters/etc. is turning. Hope those help more. Also, please, please do not forget to review, PM, follow and/or subscribe if you wish for me to continue this story. This chapter as a whole is a little blah, I know. I'll try my best to make the next one _much juicier!_**


	7. Analysis

**Okay, so I haven't continued this story in so long. To be honest, I don't have any good reasons, but nevertheless, I have made another chapter for those who still wish to read it. Also, in my most sincere form, I forgot what direction I was going with, with this story, but nonetheless, I managed to remember the main parts. So this chapter returns with Tai and Sora, since they haven't appeared past chapter three. Also, I hope to be updating this story as much as possible, now that I have many ideas as to where I want this to go. As always, the chapters in this story are short, but I try to keep them as well a mystery. Enjoy!**

* * *

"My mother, she told me of a story once. I don't really remember all the details, since it was so long ago, way before we even went to the digital world. But, I remember the theme of it so well."

He looked at her, eyeing as she touched the glass window pane, eyeing the outside, as the rain poured heavily. "A story?"

She turned, nodding. "It was about a young girl who had lost herself trying to find her lover. It was a tragedy, but I remember…" She placed a finger to her chin, smiling with subtle contempt. "…I remember feeling so sad after she told me that story. I didn't want to ask her where she heard that story, but I do know that I wanted to bring her lover to her." She turned to face Tai. "The young girl's I mean."

"And the girl, what does she have anything to do with this," he questioned, holding a paper with the phrase, "Come to the Ball of Sir Casper and his Wife, Mistress Melody".

Sora nodded her head, shrugging slightly. "I can't say for sure, but when you first showed me that, I remember the story my mother told me so well." She stood from watching the window, walking back to where Tai sat, plucking herself beside him. "But even more," she paused, eyeing Tai deeply in the eyes.

Several seconds passed, before he grew nervous. "What?" he asked, while blushing.

"Remember that play, The Vanity of Mary and Her Marionette?"

He paused, thinking. "Um…uh…," he stammered.

She rolled her eyes. "The one you skipped out on, causing me to go with your sister."

Several more seconds passed, before he mouthed an "O". "I remember," he lied, smiling with his eyes.

She frowned. "You don't remember do you?"

"Not a clue," he smirked, while rubbing the back of his head.

She sighed. "Well it doesn't matter. The point is that same play is almost like the one my mother use to tell me."

He stopped smiling, a curious face replacing his expression. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I didn't recognize the connection until I had that epiphany." She eyed him, noting the confused expression on his face. "Am I going too fast or?" she frowned.

"I lost you at epiphany," he admitted.

She sighed again, this time with more force unto her breath. Reaching over for the paper and the pencil next to it, she began to draw lines, staring with a phrase titled: "Beginning" and continuing on in a tree-like design. "Look," she stated, holding onto the edges of the paper. "This is the beginning, which I marked. "Simple?" She didn't wait for him to respond, drawing in the next lines. "Okay, now pay attention." She titled the next categories as follow: "Story One" and "Story Two".

"So one of these stories is the one told by your mother, right?" he asked, "the one with the girl losing her boyfriend, or whatever."

She nodded. "It was her husband, but it doesn't matter. This one however," she pointed towards the title, 'Story Two', "this one is that play, the one you can't remember. You got all that?"

He nodded, although he felt hurt by her acting as if he were dumb, though he didn't want to let on that he was. He kept quiet.

"To put it simply, I'll lay down a compare and contrast diagram." She then proceeded to draw twin circles, cutting into each other at the right and left hemispheres, respectively. She then titled the top lines of each circle with the same names she gave her tree diagram.

"What's that?" Tai pointed to a small box under the Venn diagram.

"It's to keep tabs on what clues we have so far," she stated, whilst writing Faceless Creature in that same box. "Okay, so I'm going to list the parts that I remember correctly, and put them in their correct categories." True to her words, she began writing away; stopping only after convincing herself she finished writing everything she could possibly remember about the two stories. "There," she explained, moving her body aside to obtain a better view.

"Okay, so what are we looking at?" he asked.

She smiled, secretly wondering whether Tai's sudden stupidity was a way of messing with her, or he really did not understand what she was explaining. "Well as you can see," she stated irritably, "I have compared both sides."

He smirked. "I know that, what I mean is, why put lost lover, arranged marriage, small mirror, and sanity in-between both circles? In other words what does that mean, and more importantly, what does it have to do with anything regarding the Faceless man."

"Well," she eyed the paper before her. "To be honest, it's the only similarities that I can remember from both stories. See, the play featured a little girl who was given a mirror at a young age, because she was beautiful. Naturally, it went on that the girl could not stop looking at herself, and in time growing more vain by the day. Now, it just so happens that this same girl was betrothed to a man she did not love, and on her fifteenth birthday, she was forced to marry the man, and in the process, losing the only love she ever had, herself. Also, the ending was that she murdered her husband, and because of it, she lost her sanity. The play ended with her ending up in a mental hospital.

"Okay, and what about this one?" he pointed towards the circle on the left.

"This one, from what my mother told me, was about a young girl, almost into her twenties, who grew up both beautiful and intelligent. Like the first one, the girl was betrothed to a man. Unlike the first one, however, the girl ended up falling in love with a man on her thirteenth birthday, the same night a ball was held, and also, the same night she was given a hand-mirror. But because she was betrothed to a different man, they could not be together, Mary and her lover."

"Mary, is that her name?" Tai asked.

She blinked. "Actually, now that I recall it, it was," she grinned. She quickly grabbed the pencil, jotting down Mary in-between the two circles. "Tai you're a genius," she yelped.

He smiled, confused, but smiling. "For what?"

"I don't know how, but while telling the story, I suddenly remembered the girl's name from my mother's story. But anyways back to the story."

"Wait, shouldn't this be a huge thing, considering all the coincidences we have already?" he stated.

She slapped a hand to the air. "Wait till' I finish, and you'll see there's more. Okay, so, uh, where did I leave off?"

He raised an eyebrow at her. "Something about Mary not being with her lover?"

"Oh yeah," she yelped again. Okay, so basically, Mary, on her eighteenth birthday, she was supposed to marry the man she was betrothed to, but a week before her marriage, she was caught kissing her lover by her own parents. Unwilling to bend to their daughter's desires, they ordered an execution by beheading."

"Whoa, an execution just because of cheating? What are they, in the dark ages?" he joked.

She made a face. "Actually the story takes place long ago, and yes, a woman caught cheating was the worst sin she could commit." She sighed. "Well as it goes, Mary's lover was beheaded, a servant boy no less, and the night before her marriage, she ended up growing crazy not being able to be with her lover that she took her own life. The next morning a few people found her body hanged, a rope extending down the same guillotine that was used to behead her lover." She took a deep breath, grinning. "So there you have it."

He smirked. "I don't know what stories your mom's into, but reading to a child about suicides and decapitations isn't something that flows to well in my book."

She punched him the arm playfully. "It's not like that," she tried to explain.

He shrugged. 'Whatever you say."

She shrugged as well, picking up the paper. "Let's just get back to this," she demanded, placing the paper back down.

"Right," he agreed, peering down at the paper now. "So, what we have now is that two girls, both named Mary, were given mirrors because they were so beautiful, but their beauty only served to betray them, since it robbed them of their lovers, causing them to turn crazy?"

She smiled. "Yeah." Her smile only lasted fro several seconds, before turning into a small frown.

"What's wrong?"

Sora remained still, sighing once more. "I'm surprised you haven't asked me what connection this has to do with out situation."

"Well I want to," he admitted. "Only, I thought you were going to explain that part eventually." The seconds lingered with silence. "You are going to explain, right?"

She nodded, eyeing him now, with a more serious expression. "You're not going to like it though."

"What do you mean," he asked, his voice growing serious as well.

She picked the pencil up, scribbling between the Venn diagram; backing away for Tai to see once she was done.

"Sir Casper," Tai read aloud. "Sir Casper?" he repeated in a more questioning tone.

She nodded. "I didn't want to put that name down, until I finished telling both stories. "Even then I didn't make a full connection, until now." She looked at him, noting the somewhat confused and familiar look on his face. "Casper was the name of the man who hosted the same ball where Mary met her lover. And given the name Casper, I'm betting my two cents his wife's name was Melody, only, her name was never revealed, even when my mother told me it."

"Yeah, but that doesn't also explain why you put Casper for both circles? I thought the ball was only held in the second story?"

She closed her eyes, laying her head on the cushion of the white sofa. "Honestly, I don't know why I did either. But…," she paused, thinking as to why she did. "I can't explain it, but I have this eerie feeling that that name Casper is related somehow to both stories."

"Okay, suppose Casper does come out of both stories, and suppose Melody was his wife's name, the only clue we have for now is just that—two names." He rolled the pencil over, laying his head down onto the coffee table. "It's too bad the stories don't tell us anything about where the Faceless man came from, or whether he has anything to do with the theatre. For all we know, he could just be stalking, us, and just chose the theatre as a perfect place to, do who knows whatever planned for us."

"That's just it," Sora shot up, causing Tai to do the same.

"What," he roared, his hair mangling.

"We don't just have one clue, we have two!"

He blinked in confusion.

"Don't you see, you idiot," she remarked. "The origin of the stories, they're our second clues."

"You mean—,"

"My mother, I just have to ask her where she heard that story and track it down from there. As for the play,"

"I'll look into whoever wrote it," Tai grinned. "Sora, you're a genius," he bellowed, hugging her.

She blushed. "It's nothing." She pulled away quickly, remembering their history together.

Noticing it, he blushed as well. "Well, uhm," she cleared his throat. "Guess I'll just start searching online for anything I can find," he quickly stated, before getting up to leave. He made almost tot the kitchen, before hearing his name. "Tai," he heard, before turning to look at the same red-head he's known for many years now. "Yeah?"

"My PC is in my bedroom, you can use it. Although I have a password to my main account, so you'll have to use the guest one. Is that fine with you?" she asked.

He smiled, nodding, before heading towards the same room he remembered once sharing a few nights with her. He sighed upon entering it, noting all the changes Sora made throughout the short years after their separation.

"Tai," Sora whispered his name after he was several feet away. She heard him quietly shut the door to her bedroom. "I'm so confused."

* * *

**Please don't forget to r/r (read and review) since reviews are what keep me motivated in continuing a story.**


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